Comedown
by heavyheartsandhope
Summary: Matt knows TK has a drinking problem, but he doesn't know how bad it really is. *references to drugs and alcohol*
1. Swinging From A Chandelier

_"Party girls don't get hurt  
Can't feel anything; when will I learn?"  
_

 _Chandelier-Sia_

* * *

 _April 3rd_

The birds chirped outside of the window, forcing the boy from his slumber. TK Takaishi rolled over, trying to grab his pillow from the other side of the bed to no avail. Slowly, he opened his eyes, squinting at the light coming into the room, and realized that he wasn't in his own bedroom. There was no other pillow to throw over him and drown out the sound.

The moment he opened his eyes, his stomach lurched. His whole body was stiff and he felt like absolute shit. He could taste last night's poison in his mouth, and trying to identify what it was made him want to vomit even more.

TK couldn't handle it anymore. Unable to contain anything, he rolled over to his other side and slid off the bed. His legs gave out below him, crashing the boy down to his knees. His stomach rumbled again, begging to release what was inside of it. TK's eyes slammed shut, his face contorting in sickness and pain. Slowly, he began crawling to where he knew the bathroom was.

"Jesus Christ," he heard a voice mutter with annoyance as the door flung open. TK felt someone grab onto his arms and pull him up off the ground, much to his internal dismay.

"Matt…" he whispered, holding a hand up to his mouth. "Bathroom…"

Moving as fast as his still-intoxicated legs could take him, he felt Matt hoist his arm over his shoulder, feeling his older brother practically carry him to the bedroom bath. The drop to the floor was hard, as if Matt threw him down, but TK didn't mind. Standing up made the nausea worse and the bathroom tiles felt cold against his skin.

TK's hands gripped to the bowl of the toilet as he hoisted himself up. He dunked his head as far as he could without getting wet, and released the contents of his stomach. With each contraction of his abdomen, a shot of pain went through him. TK was very well aware of what this meant.

"This is the fourth time you've thrown up since you got here," Matt deadpanned, leaning against the doorway as he looked down at his pitiful-looking little brother. "Or do you even remember getting here?"

TK coughed once more, taking two times to actually grab the handle to flush the toilet. The smell of his own vomit made him want to vomit again. He leaned away from the toilet and back against the tub. He refused to open his eyes and look at his brother, or any trace of light. He swallowed a disgusting amount of post-vomit saliva. "No, I don't" TK answered, hearing the sleepy gravel in his voice.

Matt turned away, unable to look at his brother. "Can you tell me anything about last night?"

TK tried to swallow again, but he already felt the night-after dehydration kick in. He sighed, not being able to move any part of his body. "I went to a teammate's house and had a few drinks," he replied, trying to put together the pieces from the night before.

"A few?" Matt scoffed. "Your teammate took your phone and called me, because you had taken shots at beer pong instead of just drinking the beer, and said you had passed out on his patio."

TK cringed at the mention of shots and beer. The mere mention of anything related to alcohol made his stomach do flips again. But he did remember playing someone in beer pong and making that decision. "Oh."

"Oh? That's all you have to say?" Matt seethed. "TK, this is the fifth time someone has called me because you threw yourself into an alcoholic stupor."

The younger boy's face scrunched up, his head pounding at Matt's loud tone. He knew it wasn't the first time; that's why he knew where he was going when he fell off the bed. He wanted to rebuttal, but he knew that anything he truthfully said would incriminate him more.

Matt continued, his arms still crossed, leaning against the door. "I had to get up at two in the morning, drive to some high schooler's house, and drag you out. You regained consciousness by the time we made it to the building." He paused, giving him some time to calm down. Matt knew yelling at him at the moment wouldn't solve anything, though it would get a lot off of his own chest. Calmer, he continued, "You threw up in the bushes outside of the building, off of the balcony outside of my door, and into the kitchen sink. As soon as I got you in here and laid you down, you were fine, until this morning."

TK couldn't respond. It wasn't the first time Matt had done something like this. It wasn't the first time TK had thrown up in this apartment. In fact, there wasn't a room in the apartment that he hadn't puked in. There was really no excuse TK could give Matt besides he just pushed himself too hard.

When he didn't get a response, Matt finally looked down at his brother. His heart cracked at the sight of a pale, sweat-glistening TK, barely able to sit up on the floor. He didn't know why his brother was so invested into alcohol, or even where it all began. But now he was starting to get worried. He knew eventually TK would go too far. For now, though, Matt had to smile down at this brother. He was safe and okay here in the bathroom, and his hangover was punishment enough for the morning. Matt would wait until the afternoon to get serious.

Reaching under his sink, Matt pulled out a washcloth and ran it under some cold water in the sink. He rinsed it out and got down on the floor in front of his brother. Gently, he placed the cold rag on TK's forehead, getting a drunken smile from the younger boy.

TK's eye slowly opened, adjusting to the light. Matt was the first thing to greet him, his face holding a comforting look, but his eyes filled with concern. TK knew what he was doing, to himself and his brother, was wrong. He wasn't even legally able to drink yet, only being seventeen. He didn't know what it was, but he always found himself with a bottle of vodka in one hand and a beer in the other.

Pushing his blurred thoughts aside, TK tried to give Matt the best smile he could through his stiff body. He still felt horrible, but less nauseous, knowing the cause of that feeling was somewhere in the apartment's plumbing. TK looked into his brother's eyes, trying to lighten the mood. "Matt, I think I'm still drunk."

Matt had to find some humor in that statement. While he wanted to be mad, he knew now wasn't the time. "You probably are; it's only nine," he nodded, pulling TK's hand to hold the cloth on his own. "Not enough time to get it all through your system."

"No, if I did what you said I did, I had thirteen shots, not nine," TK corrected, closing his eyes once more in disgust with the amount of alcohol he consumed.

Matt's eyes went wide at the number. That had to be somewhere near a lethal blood alcohol level for someone of his size. He reminded himself to look up that fact later. Pushing that thought away, Matt replied, "Nine in the morning, not the amount of shots you had."

TK brushed off the conversation, embarrassed that his mind automatically went to alcohol consumption. He moved the wet cloth around his face, trying to find spots where it was still cold. Between the rag and the tile, TK wasn't sure whether he wanted to get up or not.

As if reading his mind, Matt took the rag from his brother and stood up. "Can you make it back to my bed by yourself?" He ran the cold water again, soaking the washcloth.

TK shook his head. "Yeah," he said, confidence absent from his statement. This state of mind was nothing new to him, but he still felt weak. He grabbed onto the tub with one hand, the toilet lid with the other, and slowly hoisted himself up. The change in altitude shifted the contents of his stomach again, but he resisted the urge to fall headfirst back into puking. Instead, he reached out for Matt's forearm, steading himself on his brother. Before Matt could grab him back, TK had already released and was stumbling back to Matt's bed.

Matt shook his head at the awkward attempt to perform a healthy human function. Something was wrong with his brother; that much he knew. There were questions he knew he should have addressed long before this point in this babysitter drunk teenagers career. There were questions that he didn't know how to phrase, or how to properly bring them up. That's why he hadn't before. Matt was hesitant to bring any of this up with his little brother, knowing that he himself wasn't absolved from the drunken sin himself. But he never remembered a time where he was as bad as TK was every time he was called to pick him up.

The talk could wait until both parties were sober. Matt rung out the cloth and brought it to his brother, who was already half asleep on his back. The older one shook his head and turned the younger one on his side, remembering how he had placed him earlier in the morning to prevent him from choking on his own vomit. Matt placed the cold cloth on TK's forehead before giving his brother one more head shake and leaving him to sleep off the rest of his intoxication.

* * *

 **AN: I'm not sure how long this will be. I don't want to get too invested in it, so it won't be more than ten chapters at the most. I like exploring the darker side of the characters, so I'm very excited to see where this goes.**


	2. Through Rows of Speeding Cars

_"I've watched you slowly winding down for years  
You can't keep on like this"_

 _Speeding Cars-Imogen Heap_

* * *

 _May 15th._

The smell of coffee wafted from Izzy's kitchen. Matt was thankful for Izzy's forethought. He was up all night in thought about TK. Matt knew this was right and it was a long time coming, but after last week, he was nervous for how TK would react.

Matt looked out at the rest of DigiDestined in the living room. He wondered how much they knew about TK's troubles. His eyes fell on Kari. The two were inseparable. If anyone knew, it would be his brother's best friend.

He shook his head, walking into the kitchen. The mugs were stacked beside the coffee maker, allow Matt to help himself to one. He poured himself a cup, neglecting any cream or sugar in favor of black. He wasn't drinking it for the flavor; he was drinking it to exist.

Matt stopped his sip at that thought. He had sounded just like his brother: drinking to survive. While there was a stark difference between their choice of drink, the thought alone was enough to startle him. He looked down at the coffee and sighed.

Rejoining to group in the living room, Matt sat down on the arm of the couch, unable to drink his coffee anymore.

"Aren't we missing someone?" Mimi voiced, looking around the group.

The rest of the DigiDestined looked around, trying to solve the mystery of who was missing.

"Hey, where's TK?" Cody asked.

Matt felt their eyes fall on him, as if he was his brother's keeper. He winced, realizing he had become TK's keeper.

"Um..." He trailed off, rubbing the back of his head. How could he tell them what was going on gently? No one would ever expect this from little TK. "I told him to come in a half hour."

Tai's eyebrow furrowed, a frustrated look coming across his face. "Well, what did you do that for?"

Matt sat down his mug on the coffee table and jumped up from the couch, beginning to pace. He bit his lips, trying to find the words to say. He was never the word person, despite being in a band. TK always had the right words to say. And even if Matt did know what to say, he didn't know how to say them. This was personal and delicate.

Tai noticed how upset Matt looked, not having seen him this nervous since they lost TK back in the Digital World. It scared his best friend. "Matt, is everything okay?"

The blonde sighed, continuing to walk around the room. With every footstep he took, he got more nervous. He started playing with his hands, cracking each finger. He exhaled loudly and stopped by the TV stand. "You all love TK. You've never treated him like he was a little kid, even when he was so much younger than us. You let him stand his own ground and fight like the rest of us."

The older DigiDestined nodded, agreeing with Matt's statement.

Matt looked out on the balcony off into the city. He couldn't look at them or he would remember the young, lively little kid TK once was. "Well, TK's gotten into a lot of… adult trouble."

Sora eyed the older boy, annoyed with how cryptic he was being. "What do you mean by 'adult trouble?'"

Matt licked his lip, squinting out into the sun. "You have to promise me that when I tell you this, you won't look at him any different way." He turned his attention back to the living room, putting on the most serious face he had. "I'm serious, guys. This is still the same TK we all know and love. I need you to remember that."

The group was officially concerned. Matt was always one to remember how important friendship was to them, but if he had to reiterate that their view of TK shouldn't change, then it was something life-altering.

Another deep sigh came from Matt's mouth. He wished he could just come out and say what was wrong with his brother, but it felt like a betrayal. Any time TK was too drunk to leave a house, any time he was too drunk to go home, Matt was always the one to be there, the only one. Matt wasn't even sure the DigiDestined his age knew what was going on.

Tai interrupted his thoughts, "Matt, if there's something wrong with TK, we want to help." His arm swept across the room, including the rest of the group. "TK's part of the DigiDestined and we're always there for each other."

Matt gave an uneasy nod. He knew what Tai said was true, but it was still hard to admit it, even to himself. But these were TK's friends and they deserved to know. He exhaled again.

"Lately, TK has been… partying a lot more than usual." He licked his lips, relieved to have gotten even that smallest bit of information out. "I've been called to pick him up from numerous parties. He drinks way too much for a rebellious seventeen-year old."

Matt had to look at the ground to avoid seeing the faces of their friends. He didn't want to see the moment their thoughts about his little brother changed into some horrible, alcoholic monster.

"He's been drinking almost lethal amounts of liquor. I know; I've calculated," Matt continued. "I'm honestly surprised he hasn't had alcohol poisoning yet."

The room was quiet, taking in Matt's news. No one had ever expected TK to be the drinking type. Joe broke the silence, "How long as this been going on?"

The blonde just shook his head. "I'm not sure. I've been getting these calls for a few months now, but who knows how long before that." He ran his fingers through his hair. "I know his average number of shots is anywhere between ten and fifteen. The boy loves Bacardi more than anything."

Matt had to sit down, returning to the arm of the couch where he had started. He had never seen his brother drink, but the description alone put his mind into overdrive. He could picture his little brother knocking back shot glass after shot glass and shot-gunning beer cans. The image alone sent a shiver down his spine.

Cody handed Matt his coffee mug, to which Matt gave a curt nod in thanks. "I had to know more about what was happening to him. I went through his room." He threw his face into his hands, holding his head up on his knees. "I knew it was an invasion of privacy, but I had to know. I went through his closet, his desk, and under his bed." His knee started to shake, forcing him to lift his head back up. "He had three empty bottles of vodka and rum under his bed. Two were full in his closet. And his desk held at least four empty flasks. When I opened them, they were still wet, freshly used, and reeked of alcohol, not that I expected anything less."

He paused, trying to take another sip of the coffee. Dropping a bomb like this was hard enough for him to take in, and he had lived through it. He looked around, noticing the concern and uncomfortable expressions on their faces. It made him feel a little better, but not enough to ease his worry about how they would treat his brother.

"A few nights ago, I knew I couldn't keep this up," Matt continued, his knee still shaking. "He called me. He was scared. He said he needed me to come get him. When I asked where he was, he told me he was at home." Matt's face cringed. "I felt better thinking he was just a social drinker, but he was home, alone. I found him curled up on his bed with half a bottle of vodka in his arms. The room smelled of liquor, vomit, and weed. It was a trash heap."

Matt felt a hand grab his knee. He looked over towards the owner of the hand: Tai. He stopped jostling his knee and gave Tai another curt nod. Matt rubbed his eye, trying to get rid of the memory as he told it. "I don't even want to describe the condition I saw him in. He cried to me. He said he felt like he was dying, but… he begged me not to wake up Mom."

The sting of tears hit his eyes, something that was so unfamiliar until that night. The thought of TK like that made his heart break. "I… I didn't have a choice," Matt weakly exclaimed, looking at his friends for support. "I had to tell our mom. He wasn't okay; he's not okay."

For the first time that day, Matt realized that he hadn't said TK's name once when telling the stories. He questioned why, even though naming his brother specifically was necessary. But still, it was an interesting choice of wording.

Matt sighed, calming down from his outburst. That wasn't like him. He was calm, cool, and collected. He was the unfeeling, bad boy type. That's the character he always played on stage. But this was reality, not one of his band's concerts. And TK was more important than a gig. TK had a problem bigger than an out-of-character experience.

TK had a problem.

Matt realized why he never said his name: saying TK's name made the situation real.

Matt licked his lips and let out another audible sigh. "What I'm trying to say is…" He trailed off again, picking together the perfect words TK himself would have penned. "My brother needs help. This isn't some case of teenage rebellion. He's doing this for a reason."

Davis interrupted his thought. "Well, then, we'll help him! That's what friends do, right?"

Matt had to give a small smile for the younger boy's enthusiasm. It was refreshing to hear out of this pity-party he was having. Matt shook his head. "This isn't like the Digital World. We don't have some evil villain trying to destroy us all. This is TK's battle. We can't do it for him. He has to do it himself." He clasped his hands together and surveyed the room, taking in every concerned look and emotion-filled gaze.

"My mother and I decided the best thing to do for TK was to send him to rehab. I'm taking him tomorrow. This is his intervention."

* * *

 **AN: I decided to make this a back-and-forth past-and-present style upload. The date at the top of each chapter will tell you whether it is a flashback or the present time. Sorry if there is any confusion in the future.**


	3. Come As You Are

_"_ _Take your time, hurry up  
_ _Choice is yours, don't be late  
_ _Take a rest as a friend  
_ _As an old m_ _emoria"_

 _Come As You Are-Nirvana_

* * *

 _February 25th_

"Clink it and sink it!"

TK threw his shot back down his throat, his face scrunching up at the after taste of it. His friends around him let out a cheer as they all downed their alcohol. TK slammed the glass down on the counter again and shook his head.

He felt a pat on this back. "How ya feeling, TK?" a teammate asked, stumbling to get his footing.

TK looked around at the apartment he was in and took the time to evaluate himself. Numbers went off in his head, counting how many shots he had done with his team. He wasn't quite sure, but six sounded good.

He felt good, too. Ever since he had started partaking in drinking at these parties he occasionally frequented, he noticed how much he like how good he felt. His felt like he was floating on air; he was in the clouds. Something about his intoxicated state made him feel better than he did when he was sober, for reasons he wasn't quite sure about. It was the morning after that kept him from more.

"I'm feeling great," TK finally answered, grabbing his open beer. "But I think I'm done for the night."

A mocking groan came from a few of his teammates. "Really, dude? You just got started."

TK gave the guys a questioning look. "I think I've had plenty." But his answer didn't satisfy his blurry teammates. They still seemed upset and bummed that he was done.

The music in the background blared into TK's ears, making him wonder how they haven't gotten a noise complaint. It didn't seem right to him how they were getting away with this.

But it really didn't matter. He enjoyed the level of intoxication he was. His tolerance since his first night had increased tremendously. He cringed thinking about that night.

TK gave a sloppy smile, grabbing onto the counter with his free hand. "Give me about twenty minutes and I _might_ do another."

A collective wave of acceptance rang throughout the kitchen, all agreeing to TK's terms.

The blonde boy shook his head and walked back into the living room. Despite knowing most of the people there from classes or other sporting events, TK only ever engaged with them when he was drunk. Sober, he spent most of his time at practice or with the other DigiDestined. He had just started coming a little out of his shell as soon as a bottle hit his mouth.

He walked through the gaggle of cheerleaders sipping on cranberry vodkas on the couch and soccer players trying their best to drunkenly flirt with them. TK wondered why he hadn't seen Davis there, considering most of the soccer players there were in his grade level.

Pushing that thought aside, TK fiddled with the balcony sliding door, the lock seeming to be stuck. His fingers fiddled with it, unable to slide the lock up and the door over. Someone on the outside fixed it for him.

"Dude, it was already unlocked," a man huffed, returning to his cigarette.

TK let out a quick apology as he closed the door behind him. He hadn't noticed the lone man when he made his way towards the door. He felt like he was intruding on a private moment for him.

He placed his beer on the ground and leaned a his arms on the railing. The lights of the city sparkled in shades of yellow and orange that always looked brighter and more majestic to TK's impaired eyes. He could see his old apartment building off in the distance, with Tai and Kari's complex right across the street. Turning his head to the side, he leaned over the railing to try to see Matt's place.

A hand grabbed the back of his shirt and pulled him backwards onto the ground. "Are you trying to kill yourself?" the voice of the man earlier seethed, looking down at the confused teenager.

TK rubbed his eyes and stumbled to pick himself back up. "No, just... Looking for my brother's apartment, that's all."

TK took a better look at the man in the city light. He appeared to be older than the target demographic of the party, maybe around Matt's age. He seemed very annoyed to be standing on the balcony, or even to be at the party anyway. Sober TK would have ignored him, picked up his beer, and went back inside.

"Who are you?" Drunk TK asked. "You seem a bit old to be at a high school party."

The question didn't even phase the older man. He didn't even move his gaze from the skyline. "I'm just a chaperone and supplier," the man explained, taking another drag from his cigarette. "My brother Tyler asked me to get him some shit for this. It would be irresponsible for me to leave you guys here without someone sober."

TK nodded, knowing exactly who he was talking about. Tyler was one of his teammates and the resident of the apartment.

"You have an amazing resemblance to Joe," TK said, looking the man up and down. He would learn later that his remark was solely about his hair color and the responsibility the older man showed.

The man's gaze finally turned toward the blonde boy. His eyes were narrow, a look TK couldn't place as angry or confused. "Who?"

"Oh, just a friend I have," TK clarified, his normal response to apologize and ignore the situation disappearing with his tolerance. TK did as the other man did and faced the city.

The older man continued to look at the younger boy confused, but then shook his head of the matter. Curtly, he asked, "What are you doing out here, anyway? Shouldn't you be inside trying to get laid like the rest of them?"

TK let it a hardy laugh at the prospect. "Oh, no. Been there, done that," he sighed, struggling to lean down and get his beer. "My drunken stupors are now solely dedicated to ruining myself, not anyone else."

The older man gave a small smirk at the response. It wasn't what he expected, knowing what his own little brother's plans for the night were.

"Anyway," TK interrupted his thoughts, "I just needed a break. I'm supposed to go back inside in..." he looked down at the time on his cell phone, "… ten minutes anyway to take another shot."

The older man's smirk fell. He turned away from the city and walked towards a bag on the other side of the balcony. "If you think you're gone, kid, you should stop," he calmly advised, reaching down into a pouch of the bag. "Stay out here until they come to drag you in."

TK raised an eyebrow at the prospect. When he had stumbled onto the balcony moments before, the man looked like he wanted him to leave as soon as possible. But now he was inviting him to stay. The younger male was skeptical about the idea, but looking inside at the drunken debauchery of hook-ups and split beer pong cups, he had to admit being outside on the cool February breeze felt a lot better than being inside.

TK walked over to the man and the bag, sitting down on the ground across from him. The older man shook his head. "I don't understand my brother," he smirked, shaking his head as he dug into the bag. "Planning a party to hook up? Does he not know what whiskey dick is?"

TK let out a laugh. While drunk TK normally found anything funny, the statement was even more funnier now than it normally would have been. "Ehh, Tyler tries, I supposed," TK replied, leaning back on his hands.

"Well, downing shot after shot is only going to burn him out eventually," the older man stated, pulling out a bottle. "If he had just followed my lead, he would only have to have two of these mixed in something and he would be fine."

TK glanced at the bottle in the other man's hand, his vision too out-of-focus to read the label.

"Everclear," the man proudly whispered, "Potent shit. Two drinks and you'll feel fine."

TK's eyes widened. He had been told about it, but never seen it. All he knew is that it was almost one hundred percent alcohol and got people drunk quickly.

The older boy picked up the shock in the blonde's eyes. "It's not illegal, and it's not dangerous in moderation," he laughed, standing up. "I'll got get us some fruit punch. It's the best to mix it with. Tastes just like cough syrup."

Before TK could comment on the disgusting taste of cough syrup, Tyler's brother had retreated to the house. TK's glazed eyes went back to the alcohol. He reached over, his finger fumbling to pick up the bottle. He put it up to his face, trying his best to read over the label, an action he knew was useless in his state.

The balcony door opened and shut again, startling the blonde enough to quickly set the bottle back down before turning around. It was Tyler's older brother, back with two red cups.

"I promise, you're not going to die drinking this," the older man laughed, sitting back down across from TK. He began pouring a small amount—maybe a shot worth, according to TK's judgement—into the cups. His swirled a cup around with his hand before handing it over.

TK, confused, took the cup anyway. He looked down in it and smelled it. His gage reflex kicked in, causing him to feel some of the other drinks he had that night coming up.

"You gonna be okay?" the older man asked, taking a small drink of his cup. "Can't have you dying on my watch."

TK shook his head, then nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine." Not hesitating any longer, he took a drink, a longer gulp than the man across from him. His mouth was confused at the taste of sweet and bitter mixing inside, and his throat burned as he swallowed. It was unusual for a mixed drink to do that to him, but he put it out of his mind.

"Gah!" he gagged, setting the cup down. "That's strong."

The older man let out a single laugh before taking another sip. "Go hard or go home."

TK took a smaller sip of his own cup, remaining in the silence between the two. He knew it wasn't his smartest move to accept alcohol from a practical stranger, but his judgment was shot at the moment. Besides, something about Tyler's brother made him feel content and safe outside on the balcony.

A few minutes had passed before the older man pulled out his pack of cigarettes, pulling one out for himself before holding the rest out towards TK. "Need a smoke?"

TK had never smoked before. It was never offered to him, besides at his brother's concerts. He shrugged. "I'm already destroying my liver. Why not take out my lungs with them?" He fumbled to pull one out the pack and held it between his index and middle finger, just as he had seen his mother and brother do before.

Tyler's brother lit his own before TK's. He took a long drag and looked up at the sky, not paying any attention to the younger boy.

TK did just as the other man had done. If he could drink like him, he figured he could smoke like him, too.

A long drag turned into a fit of coughs as TK tried to clear his lungs. The fit lasted longer than he expected. He needed a drink, but the only thing he had was his mixed drink and half a beer. So he downed the rest of his beer.

TK exhaled, looking down at the cigarette. "How do you do this?"

The older man scoffed. "Practice, kid." He took another drag. "I only smoke when I drink, though, so it took me some time, too."

TK nodded, taking a smaller drag of his cigarette this time. He breathed in, holding the smoke in for as long as he could, before exhaling. He felt better, not as drunk, but still not sober. He took another drink of his Everclear punch.

The balcony door opened as two overly intoxicated high-schoolers stumbled out. "T-TK! It's been 20 minutes!" Tyler exclaimed.

The other shot his fist into the air. "Shot time!"

TK looked over at Tyler's older brother, who paid no attention to the boys. "Just don't get yourself killed, kid."

His teammates looked down at the scene on the balcony. Tyler spoke up first, "Mark, what are you doing with my friend?"

The older man ignored the comment for a second, taking another drag. He put the liquor bottle back in his bag and stood up. He held his hand down for TK. "Get up. My brother awaits your arrival," he said, curtly.

Eyebrows furrowed, TK grabbed the older man's hand, now knowing his name. He reached over for the railing, trying to get a grasp on anything to keep him up straight. His eyes went black, the light hitting them making circles. TK knew what was going on; the Everclear hit him. Once his eyes adjusted to the new elevation, he looked down at this cup. It was half full. He didn't remember drinking the other half.

"You okay, TK?" the other boy asked, reaching a hand out to the blonde.

TK looked over at his friend and nodded. He returned his head to his cup, but it was gone. A tap hit his shoulder. He turned around. Mark held out his cup with a smirk.

"Like I said, don't die, kid. I don't need to take responsibility for this."

Before TK could get any slurred word out, Tyler and his other teammate were dragging him back into the kitchen. The room was spinning, with a lot more people talking around him now. His thoughts wouldn't stay put. Everything around him seemed so unclear.

He needed a drink.

TK sipped on his Everclear punch as Tyler and four other teammates poured shots. Six vodka shots, all sitting in a circle around the counter. Tyler slid them down to the boys, sloppily knocking over a few. They each held a glass in their hand, and before anyone could say "Clink it and sink it!" TK downed his shot, using his punch as a chaser.

The team noticed TK's premature drink before they took theirs. Finishing their group shot, they started cheering the blonde on, patting his back, and pouring more shots.

"No, I think I'm good," TK slurred, pushing away the glasses.

That would be the last thing TK remembered about that night.

He walked over to the dining table and threw himself down on a chair. His head fell into his hands as he buried himself on the table top between the two cup pyramids, the game abandoned in favor of the opportunity to get some sexual favors from the living room.

TK lifted his head, looking at the abandoned game. The team on the right side was winning, five cups to four. TK laughed, knowing if he was playing, the game would have been done. One thing he had discovered about his drunk self was that he was excellent at beer pong.

He stood up and stumbled over the left side of the table, the losing side. His hand smacked around the table, looking for the ball. He noticed his hand was wet once he found it; he had split a few beer cups on his way.

TK shook his head and took another drink of his mixed punch. His mouth was surprised to receive so little. He laughed, not remembering having finished the drink off. No matter, he threw the empty cup to the ground and shot the ping pong ball across the table, landing a cup.

He silently cheered himself until he realized he was the only one who noticed. His eyes opened wide, wondering where everyone went. Was he the only one there? He got scared and stumbled as fast as he could to the living room.

Everyone was in there, making small talk around the coffee table. A few people were scattered across the room, making their move for their one-night stand.

TK sighed, relieved to have found people. Tyler saw him enter and beckoned him to come over to join their conversation with his free hand. His other hand was around a girl TK knew Tyler had his eyes on. The blonde did as he was told and sat on the ground in the circle. He didn't speak, though. The conversation was moving too fast for his brain to catch up with. The colors of the people around him blurred together, causing him to close his eyes for most of the discussion.

His ears did pick up on some of the conversation, as his ears were trained to do when it came to the topic. The group was talking about the Digimon encounter that had happened years before. Talks about the giant bird and dinosaur that destroyed blocks of the city when they were four apparently still laid fresh in their minds.

Despite knowing more about that encounter than any of them would ever know, even blackout drunk, TK knew better than to talk about it. While the world knew about Digimon now, the DigiDestined tried to keep a low profile on their adventures saving the world.

Still, the conversation made him yearn for it again. His eyes darted out to the balcony, looking at the starry, two A.M. sky. He remembered how it felt, fighting side by side with Angemon and Pegasusmon all those years ago. They seemed like forever since he had seen them. Even though they could go back and forth between the human world and the Digital world, there was no need for Patamon to digivolve anymore, so Angemon and Pegasusmon were just another memory to him.

TK's face tightened at the thought. He would give anything to be back there in that moment. He felt his pocket, feeling for the Digivice he always had on him, just in case. He knew what he needed to do.

Abruptly, he got up and ran for the balcony, throwing he door open. He ran for the railing, holding out his Digivice to the sky. "Digiport O—"

"TK! What are you doing?" Tyler yelled, tugged on the back of TK's shirt. Both boys went down off the railing and back onto the balcony,

TK shook his head, pushing himself up off the ground. "No, I have to go back! Patamon needs me!"

Before Tyler could even ask what TK had meant, the Digivice came crashing down the ground as TK's head fell over the edge. He vomited down to the foliage below.

Tyler and few other boys kept a grip on his shirt to keep him from falling over. They managed to pull him back onto the balcony and laid him on the ground.

TK didn't move. He passed out on the cool stone.

The boys, drunk themselves, panicked. "What do we do?" one asked.

Tyler dove to the ground, patting his unconscious teammate down. "We gotta call his brother. He'll know what to do."

* * *

 **AN: I chose to use English names for other characters rather than Japanese names, because I'm using the English dub names of the DigiDestined. I thought it would keep some consistency. Also, all drinks mentioned are one that I have had myself, just so I don't give any wrong information on the subject.**


	4. For You To Mock

" _I've been too involved to call it off.  
I've been away for so long; all I've got are  
weak foundations, wishful thoughts, and all around a greater view."_

 _Mock-The Story So Far_

* * *

 _May 15_ _th_

The room sat in an uncomfortable silence. There were a bunch of questions being thrown around in their heads, but no one wanted to go first. No one knew exactly how to approach this. They had battled evil Digimon, evil humans, and even their own demons, but they all knew what they were up against. With TK, they weren't even sure he knew his own battle.

Matt spoke up, "I just felt like you guys needed to know. You've always been a big support system for TK and myself all of these years. If anyone can help him turn his life around, or even realize he has this problem, it'll be us."

He clasped his hands together, interlacing his fingers on top of his knees. "I know this comes out of nowhere, and I'm risking my relationship with my brother by even telling you guys, but TK's life means more to me than the relationship I have with him." The room remained silent as Matt felt his eyes sting again. "I would rather have a brother who is alive and doesn't speak to me, than a brother who is dead."

The tension remained at Matt's statement, the group finally realizing how serious the issue was. It was more than just a case of underage drinking; Matt legitimately feared for TK's life. That concerned them all.

Finally, Tai broke the tension. He had always been the unappointed leader of their group. He figured it was his actions that would set them into motion. "Okay, we're in," Tai decided for the rest of the group.

Matt gave his best friend a small smile. "I knew I could count on you."

"I know a few specialists who deal with this type of problem," Joe offered, reaching for his phone. "I can see if any of their names match the facility."

"And I know some recipes that people swear helped them kick their habit!" Mimi exclaimed, running for her bag.

"And we'll be by his side the whole way," Sora assured, placing her hand on Matt's back. Matt looked up at the owner of the Crest of Love, remembering a time when she thought she wasn't worthy of such a crest, and how much she actually exemplified it.

"Yeah!" Yolei chimed in from the other side of the room. Her fist shot up in the air and her face held a determined look. "We've been up against worst villains than this!"

"Besides, this is TK we're talking about," Ken interrupted, calmer than his purple-haired companion. "This is the same guy that decked me in the face when I was the Digimon Emperor."

"And the same kid who helped defeat Devimon," Izzy added.

"And Myotismon," Joe said.

"And MaloMyotismon," Cody reminded.

Matt smiled at the memories of his brother. TK had always kept his head held high in the face of adversity. He always had such high hopes for the world. But Matt's smile soon faltered. TK had saved two worlds more times than anyone at his age should have had to do. TK was one of the people in charge of keeping humanity and Digimon alive. That's a heavy burden to bear a kid with.

"I appreciate your help; I really do," Matt thanked, eyeing the room of kind and helpful friends. "I know what that kid has been up against, but they've all been forces outside of him. He's seen—hell, we've all seen—more evil and destruction than anyone our age should have." Matt exhaled, biting his lower lip. "I'm honestly surprised that drove only one of us to drink."

Tai held a stern look on his face. "You know better than any of us that joking isn't going to help anyone right now."

Matt pursed his lips and removed himself from the couch. He picked up his coffee cup and downed the rest of it in silence. He looked out at the midday view of the city skyline. The city looked peaceful, as if no attacks had ever happened.

Matt sighed again and turned around to the rest of the DigiDestined. "I just wish I could tell you guys more, to help you understand better," he confessed. "Hell, I don't even know most of it myself. I don't know when all of this started, how long it's been going on, or why this happening."

Izzy spoke up, trying to put together the prices they did have. "Do you know who he has been with?"

Matt nodded. "He's normally with his basketball team, but I suppose sometimes he's alone," he answered, his eyes darting away from looking at anyone else. The night a week ago finding his brother saying he was on the brink of death still haunted his memory.

"Then maybe Davis knows something," Tai concluded, looking over at the other spiky-haired boy. "I know when we were in high school, the soccer team normally partied with the other athletes"

Davis' face went red as all of the eyes hit him. "I mean, I have seen TK at some parties, but I was too drunk to really notice him much," he admitted, rubbing the back of his head. "But every time I saw him, he was drinking from a soda bottle. I never really saw him drink much, I don't think."

Kari let out a scoff from the seat in the corner, rolling her eyes.

Tai ignored his sister and turned towards the other boy in TK's grade. "Ken?"

Ken bit his lower lip and gave the group a disappointed look. "I'm afraid I don't know much. Every party I've ever been to was a result of Yolei dragging me. I'm normally watching her all night."

Yolei's face went red. "You didn't have to tell them that," she whispered through her teeth.

Matt's gaze turned towards the purple-haired girl. "Yolei, do you drink?"

Her face went even more red. "I mean, yeah, I'm in college now," she admitted. "But even in high school, all of the parties I went to were geared more towards computer geeks and science people. TK and I have never been around each other drunk."

Matt sighed, returning to his seat. He didn't even bother to ask Cody, knowing how strict the youngest of the group was about laws and legal matters. His head sunk in his hands, frustrated that the mystery about his brother's alcoholism was still opened ended.

"What about you, Kari?" Mimi asked.

Matt lifted his head up to look over at Kari. She was laying on a chair by herself, with her legs thrown over the arm and her face staring out the balcony window. Her express was frozen to a stoic look of indifference.

"You've been awfully quiet this whole time," Tai noted with some suspicion in his voice. "If you know anything, now's the time to tell us."

Kari refused to look over at the group. Her body remained frozen in the silence, the other DigiDestined waiting for a reply. She pursed her lips angrily before uttering in an emotionless voice, "Of course, Davis never saw TK drink. He poured the liquor into the soda bottle." She paused, still not looking at anyone else in the room. "It was me."

Matt's eyebrows furrowed at the statement, even more confused than before.

"What do you mean?" Tai asked. He had never known his sister knew what alcohol was, much less what it tasted like.

Kari remained facing towards the window. Her voice was bitter and frustrated. "It was me, okay? I'm the one that started this. _I_ took him to his first alcoholic party. _I_ made his first mixed drink. _I_ took his first shot with him."

The silence returned to the room at her confession. The brunette girl had a small set of tears form in her eyes, thinking about what she had started for her best friend.

"It was me," she confessed, her voice shaking through the tears she tried to hold back. "I'm the one that made him an alcoholic."

* * *

 **AN: I apologize if this is seems short and for leaving it open ended. I have the next chapters planned out a lot better than this one. The next chapter is already halfway written, so expect it to be published soon. I also apologize if there are any errors I did not catch in my proofreading. I wrote most of this story on my iPhone Notes app while I'm at the gym.**


	5. That's What We Call Love, Sex, Riot

" _Nobody wants a couple of rights without a couple of wrongs, yeah.  
And the fire that you're building up is coming off so strong...  
Let's skip the foreplay and become the teenage waste."_

 _Love, Sex, Riot-Issues_

* * *

 _November 28_ _th_ _of the previous year._

The music from inside the house made the ground under TK's feet shake. He was surprised that the police hadn't been called by then for a noise complaint.

He took one look around at the neighborhood. It was a small suburb on the outskirts of the city. He had been to this house a few times, but never under these circumstances. A teammate was throwing a party, with alcohol. TK had never tired alcohol before.

He felt a hand brush up against his arm. "Come on," his best friend said. "The party's inside!"

TK laughed at Kari's enthusiasm. He was nervous to invite her in the first place, knowing that this may not be her type of party. But she seemed perfectly fine dragging him through the door and into the crowd of teenagers.

It looked exactly how the movies told him it would look: teenagers packed like sardines into a few rooms where everyone was holding either a plastic cup or a bottle. The music was loud, but he could hear the rumbles of a few conversations as he passed by. TK just let Kari lead him wherever she went.

They made it to the kitchen, which wasn't as preoccupied as the rest of the house. TK recognized a few teammates, including the one who lived at the house.

"TK!" the boy called, noticing the pair. He beckoned them over, fist bumping the blonde. "Nice to see you could make it, and you brought a date." The boy winked over at Kari.

Kari rolled her eyes, giving him a playful smile. She had been used to being called TK's girlfriend, even if she wasn't. They were around each other so much that people assumed they were together. While some people might have been annoyed by it, the assumptions never really bothered the DigiDestined. As long as they knew it wasn't true, neither really cared. "It's nice to see you, too, Kyle."

Kyle did a once over of the two and noticed something missing. "Oh, where are my manners?" he fawned dramatically, as if he really cared about properly hosting etiquette. "You want something to drink?"

TK's eyes went wide before he immediately shook his head. "Oh, no, we don–"

"I'll take a few shots of whatever liquor you have," Kari interrupted him, going through her bag. TK's eyes widened as she pulled out a plastic bottle of cranberry juice. As one of the other teammates went to get her the liquor, Kari looked up at TK's shocked eyes and began to laugh, "What, TK? You think this is my first time?"

"I mean, I assumed…" TK began, but cut himself off as Kari drank a little from her juice and filled the rest of the empty space up with vodka.

Kyle turned the attention back to the blonde. "So you've never drank before?"

TK felt red in the face. "Well, no, not exactly. Does wine on family trips back to Paris count?"

The boys let out a loud laugh at TK's confession. Kyle walked over to the fridge and pulled out a brown bottle. He twisted off the cap and shoved it into TK's hand. "Look, what you do or don't do is none of our business, but if you want to drink, here's your bottle." Kyle thumb pointed to the living room, giving TK a smirk. "And if you don't, just hold it for the night. No one will ask you why you aren't drinking if you have a beer in your hand."

TK was quite surprised at the logic of that. While he had known people were going to be drinking at this party, he never gave a thought as to whether he would or not. TK was never a rebellious type. He never saw himself as an underage drinker. Watching Kari take her first gulp of her mixed drink, he felt his demeanor softened. If Kari could do it, then he could, too.

Kyle and his other teammates had walked into the living room, leaving the DigiDestined and a few other stragglers in the kitchen. Kari looked up at TK with an amused look. "So you've never tried alcohol before?"

TK shrugged, feeling the red come back to his face. "No. I mean, I've never really given it any thought."

Kari pursed her lips, looking down at her bottle. "Would you like to try tonight?" She held her mixed drink out to him. "It's not a big deal if you don't."

TK bit his lip, looking at her offer. While he was only sixteen, there were other sixteen year olds around him who had done it numerous times. What could the harm be?

"I will, but I have my own," TK said, holding up his beer.

Kari laughed, talking TK's bottle from his head. "No, you better start with this." She reached into her backpack and pulled out a fruit punch bottle. "I got you one, in case you went through with this."

She twisted the top of and handed it to TK with instructions on how much to drink. The boy did as he was told and nervously swallowed gulp after gulp until he was to the wrapping line.

As he watched Kari fill the bottle up with the vodka Kyle gave her, TK asked, "Why can't I just drink this beer first?"

Kari finished off the bottle, closing the lid and shaking it a few times. "Beer before liquor, never sicker," she answered, smirking as she handed him back the bottle. She tiled her own at him, asking for a cheers. "Liquor before beer, you're in the clear."

It would be much later until TK learned that that saying was a myth, but he went along with it that night. The two DigiDestined clinked bottles and took a drink. TK was amazed by the subtle taste difference the vodka made to the fruit punch.

Kari must have noticed the enlightened twinkle in her best friend's eyes. She laughed, "Is it good?"

TK nodded, taking another drink. He couldn't believe that he, TK Takaishi, was drinking liquor at a house party. He joked, "There's a first time for everything."

* * *

TK felt his head began to get light as he walked through the crowd of people. He was almost finished with his fruit punch and had to find Kari. She had run into some people she knew from the dance team she was on and had lost TK in the process. Not that it mattered, seeing how preoccupied TK was with his teammates.

He stumbled into the kitchen to find Kari talking with Kyle. The bottle of vodka she had mixed their drinks with was sitting on the counter between them. He decided to walk up to them.

"Hey, TK, Kari told me about your first drink. How ya feeling?" Kyle asked, placing a hand on TK's back.

TK looked between both of them, overcome by a sudden feeling of appreciation for the two. Kyle made such an inviting home for this party and was always a kind teammate to him. Kari, well, she was Kari, the same girl who had been there for him in the Digital World and the real world. He smiled at both of them. "I'm great. Never felt better."

Kari and Kyle shared a laugh at TK's expense. "Yeah, he's a little drunk," Kari concurred, examining the remains of TK's drink.

"You want some more?" Kyle offered, holding up the vodka bottle. "Kari and I were just about to take a shot."

TK looked over the bottle, now noticing the two shot glasses on the table. He knew what shots were, but he thought they were only for celebrations. "What are you celebrating?"

The two let out another laugh at his expense. "Well, I guess we're celebrating your first drunk outing, now."

The blonde boy liked the sound of that. "Okay, I'm in."

Kari gave him a concerned look through her smile, trying to downplay the situation. "Are you sure? A mixed drink is one thing, but shots are a little different."

TK furrowed his eyebrows at his best friend. She was the one who gave him alcohol in the first place. He didn't see the issue with having his first shot that night, too. "No, I'll be okay. I've got a chaser!" He held up the rest of his fruit punch, proud of himself for knowing what a chaser was.

Before Kari could protest, Kyle was already pouring three shots. "That's the spirit. That's what I like to hear." He gave the two DigiDestined their shot glasses, holding his own up. "Okay, TK, just throw it back. Don't even think about putting it in your mouth. Knock it back to your throat and swallow."

TK nodded, nervously staring down at the clear liquid in his shot glass. He remembered the slight burning sensation in the back of his throat at the mixed drink. He wondered how much it would hurt with the shot.

Kyle got his attention again. "Okay, so what you do is you tap glasses." He and Kari demonstrated this action. "You bring the glass back down to the counter." They sat their glasses down. "And then throw it back!" Kyle refrained from demonstrating that part, opting to wait for the real thing.

Kari eyed TK with a comforting smile. "Are you ready?"

TK bit his lower lip and looked between his best friend and his teammate. He gave them a weak nod. "As I'll ever be."

Kyle laughed. "Okay, then! Clink it and sink!"

The chime of the three glasses rang out as the three tapped shot glasses, hit the counter, and knocked back their vodka.

The burning sensation filled TK's mouth. His eyes flung open as he quickly swallowed, transferring the burn to his throat. A cough came up as he set the glass down and reached for the rest of his punch.

Kari let out a giggle before reaching her arm out to her friend. "You okay, TK? How did that feel?"

TK let out a loud gag, wiping his mouth of the excess punch that drooled out of his mouth. "People actually enjoy doing that?" he asked, disgusted.

Kari laughed again, taking the shot glass from him. "Not particularly, but it does the job," she explained, setting them down by Kyle's vodka bottle.

TK squinted his eyes at her. "What job is that? Disinfecting my esophagus?"

"Getting you drunk," Kari laughed, the buzz of her mixed drink finally hitting her.

TK had to smile at her logic. For his first time being drunk, it wasn't that bad. "Okay, but I don't think this feeling is worth the taste of that stuff," he joked.

Kari grabbed his hand, tugging on it as she started towards the back entrance of the house. "Come on. One of my dance teammates that has something that will change your mind."

Before she could pull him out of the kitchen, TK grabbed his drink and the shot glasses they had used off of the counter. She pulled him passed the games of beer pong and flip cup set up in the dining room, and out onto the patio of the backyard. The cool November air brushed TK's face, making him realize how warm he was. He reached his hand up to his cheek, letting the back of the fingers holding the shot glasses stroke the warm sensation building on his face.

Kari pulled up to a girl TK recognized, but didn't remember her name. In fact, most names at the party were blurred together, with and without the assistance of alcohol. TK looked at the other girls sitting around the patio set and remembered seeing their faces somewhere, but couldn't place their names to save his life.

"Lindsay, how much of that Fireball do you still have?" Kari asked.

The girl who was apparently Lindsay rolled her eyes and reached down to the floor. "I still have a half bottle," she groaned, setting it on the counter. "I asked my brother to get me some Bacardi, but he forgot that I can't drink this shit anymore. Not after that full bottle I drank last month."

Kari reached into her bag, pulling out a flask. "There should be about five shots of rum in here," she explained, swirling the flask around in the air to estimate her statement. "If I give you this and promise to get you Bacardi for next week, can I finish off that Fireball for you?"

Lindsay looked like she was thinking it over, but almost immediately held out the bottle to her. "Go ahead, take it," she replied, exchanging the bottle for the flask. "But you aren't getting this back until I get my Bacardi, deal?"

Kari winked at her, grabbing TK's forearm. "Deal," she accepted. She pulled TK away from the crowd and back into the house. They moved passed the crowd of people to the staircase. "You know where the bathroom is?" she asked.

"Yeah," TK replied, replacing her grip with his own as he stumbled his way up the stairs. He was confused on what they were doing, but he knew it wasn't his place to question Kari. She obviously knew more about this life than he did.

The two DigiDestined made their way to the bathroom at the end of the hall. Kari hustled TK in before flipping on the light and locking the door. "Okay, Takaishi, this is what we're doing."

TK looked up at her as best as he could, with the first alcohol running through his system. He took a seat on the edge of the bathtub and listened.

Kari took the shot glasses from TK and set them on the sink counter. "This stuff is called Fireball. It tastes like cinnamon, so it's not as harsh as that vodka downstairs, but it still packs a punch."

TK sat with his eyes wide as he watched Kari pour out two shots of the orange liquid. He wasn't quite sure what he was supposed to be doing, if he was supposed to be doing anything at all. His mind was quite fuzzy in this situation, from inexperience and intoxication.

When she handed a glass to him, she sat down on the edge of the bathtub next to him. "I gave you about three shots in that mixed drink, so this Fireball will bring you to five. You should be good for the night." Before TK could get another word out, she knocked back her own. "That brings me up to six, so one more should do me."

TK gulped as Kari poured her last shot. He wasn't sure this was even his best friend in front of him. He had never known her to be this kind of high schooler. Taking a look down at his own liquor, he reminded himself that he never thought he would be drinking at his age either.

"TK?" Kari's voice interrupted his thoughts. "You don't have to if you don't want to. You're probably drunk already, but I wasn't sure how hard you wanted to go." Her eyes looked over the bottle in the hand. "I can slow myself down, too, if it'll make you feel better."

TK thought his eyes narrowed at her statement, but his face remained the same uncertain look. "This isn't slow?" he asked.

Kari laughed, setting the bottle in the empty tub. "This is pretty normal pace, for me at least." She looked up to the ceiling. The music down below rattled the shower supply basket hanging on the shower head. Hiding out in the bathroom to sneak a few extra drinks from her friends was an old trick of hers, but she was used to being alone when she did it. TK's immature presence next to her gave her a sense of responsibility she never had to take before. Her eyes went back to her best friend, who was still looking at her with a confused look. "It's all up to how you're feeling."

The smell of cinnamon rose up from the glass that sat on his lap. TK noticed how strong it smelled, his nose turning up a bit. He liked cinnamon-flavored things, but this was a little too strong smelling for his taste. Looking over at Kari, he saw the caring expression she normally wore underneath her reddened cheeks. It made him wonder about all he didn't know about her. He told her everything, but she had hidden this aspect of her life from him for an unknown amount of time.

TK pursed his lips and looked down at his drink. He remembered how Kari took her shots with ease, how she knew exactly how much alcohol to pour in the drinks, and how she knew exactly how to get them the bottle that sat between them in the bathtub. He wondered if he had been holding her back that night, if she was purposely going slower than her usual to watch over him. Kari was one of the people he cared most about. He felt bad about his conclusion.

Without a word, TK chucked the glass up to his lips and opened his throat, letting the cinnamon liquor fall down. He heard Kari let out a small gasp that turned into a laugh as he quickly exhaled the excess air he took down with him. Opening his eyes, he smiled at the sight of Kari holding her hands over her mouth to keep from laughing any more than she already had. "I can keep up," he assured her.

To prove it, the blonde reached down into the bathtub, trying to find the bottle. His hand waved over the area he could reach, but to no avail. He turned his body around with a confused look. "Where did it—"

Before he could finish his sentence, TK fell face first off of the edge and into the bathtub. Kari's hands flew away from her mouth as she laughed louder than she had that night. Ignoring the pain in his head, TK laughed with her.

Between giggle fits, Kari said, "TK... The bottle was... right here!" She held up the Fireball that had been placed closer to her side of the bathtub than his own.

TK rolled his eyes and adjusted his tousled hair "You think this is so funny?" he asked with a smirk on his face. Before Kari could answer, he grabbed her arm, pulling her down into the bathtub next to him.

The two laughed as they sat up in the tub, their legs propped up on the edge where they had been sitting. TK reached over her to pick up the Fireball. Kari placed her hand on his, stopping him in his tracks.

"I think it's starting to hit us," she examined, the smile not leaving her face. Even as she said those words, her other hand moved towards the shot glasses perched on the edge.

TK shook his head, causing her to stop reaching for the glasses. "You said it yourself: we're just getting started." He pulled the bottle away from Kari and unscrewed the cap. He had seen enough movies and been to enough backstage areas to know that shot glasses weren't always needed.

Kari lifted an eyebrow as she watched TK take a swig directly from the bottle. "I never said that," she fought, taking the bottle from his hand.

TK shrugged, silently proud of himself for not gagging that time. "Okay, maybe I thought that, then."

* * *

A loud bang hit on the bathroom door. "Hey, some people have to pee!"

The drunk DigiDestined laughed from their position in the bathtub, still where they were when they fell. "We'd better get out before they come in," Kari suggested, already holding onto the edge for supported.

TK nodded as best he could without getting dizzy and started to pull himself up. The two stumbled over each other, losing their grip quite a few times until TK managed to take his second foot out. With one hand on the sink counter, he reached out to Kari with the other, pulling her up with his free hand.

Just as TK reached for the door, Kari's high-pitched voice cried out, "The Fireball!"

TK looked down in the tub where he last remembered the bottle, only to see the empty shell of what the cinnamon liquor once was. "Kari, we finished it."

The brunette's eyes widened at the empty bottle. "Oh, no. We went a little overboard."

TK took her wrist and pulled her attention back. "Nah, I think we're good now," he assured her, opening up the door. A smirk formed on his face. "Was that your normal pace?"

Kari laughed at his joke, remembering how they had finished that whole bottle in the first place. Her head felt light and dizzy as TK led her passed the two girls waiting outside the bathroom. They looked vaguely familiar, but she couldn't place their names at the moment. In fact, she barely remembered TK's name. She hadn't been this drunk in a while. She silently reprimanded herself. She was supposed to be watching out for TK, not getting as drunk as him.

TK stopped at the top of the steps and turned around, letting go of his best friend. "Kari," he whispered, grabbing onto her shoulders. "How do we get downstairs? We gotta go downstairs. The people are downstairs."

Kari sighed, taking his hand in hers. "Okay, good point," she slurred, nodding her head in determination. "Hold my hand. We'll take this slow."

TK nodded back. While Kari had practice in the state of intoxication, he was a rookie. He had to follow her lead or fall apart by himself.

The song playing in the living room changed as they started their descent. A loud scream of joy rang out through the house. TK tried to focus his ears to what the song was. It was familiar, but he wasn't sure where from.

Kari stopped in front of him, hearing the first notes of the new song. Her eyes widened and her smile lit up. She turned around to TK and squeezed his hand. "This is my favorite song!" she exclaimed. "Come on! Come dance with me!"

Before TK could process this new information, his body was being drug down the steps faster than his drunken feet could catch up. He stumbled onto the staircase landing, but he didn't have much time to regain his composure before Kari swept him towards the living room.

The lights that had been there earlier look brighter and more vibrant. The colors stuck out more. A group of girls from Kari's dance team circled around themselves in the middle of the room. Kari, letting go of TK, ran into the group and joined their dancing.

TK was left standing on the outskirts of the room. Dumbfounded and alone, he became aware of how drunk he actually was, without Kari to balance him out. A hand hit his back, startling him.

"Hey, TK, just heard you walked out of the bathroom with Kari," Kyle teased, wrapping his arm around his teammate's neck. When TK didn't answer, Kyle's face turned curious. He looked into the blonde's eyes, noticing the change in his pupils, and then the warm coming from his cheeks. Kyle smiled wider, laughed, "Dude, are you gone?"

TK didn't know how to answer. He wasn't sure how he would know if he was gone. So he continued to give his teammate a startled look.

Kyle pat his back again and began walking towards the group of dancing girls in his living room. "Hey, don't leave this house. You're too drunk to go anywhere. I'll put you up for the night. Deal?"

TK didn't have time to answer before Kyle turned his back on him. As Kyle entered the group, Kari came rushing out. She took hold of TK's hands, looking up with eager, happy eyes. "TK, I said come dance with me," she whined, already dragging him towards the group.

"But K-Kari," he stumbled, standing awkwardly in front of her as she danced. "I don't know how to dance."

Kari rolled her eyes, letting it a drunk laugh. She took hands and placed them on her hips before wrapping hers around his neck. "Just relax and move your body to the beat!" she yelled over the song. "It's not that hard!"

TK tried to do as she told him, but it was hard when she was that close to him. He felt like he was holding her up. Her hips grinded against his, moving in a circle as Kari threw her hands up and let out an excited scream.

TK laughed, looking around at what the other guys were doing. He smirked, noticing that it was the same repetitive motion. If they were drunk and could do that, then he could, too.

He moved one hand up her back, pushing Kari closer to him as he matched the circular motion she was making with his own hips. The brunette looked up surprised, then laughed when she realized that she had gotten through to him.

The two had never danced like that before. The closeness that they had never felt was ignored in favor of the alcohol flowing through their system. Neither of them took note of the sensual positions they were in as they danced with the rest of the teenagers.

TK smiled, laughing and thinking about how much fun he was having. He hadn't had fun like that in a while, not since the Digital World with everyone. The thought of the destruction and life-changing events were far from his mind tonight.

He took a look down at Kari, who had placed one arm on his shoulder as the other one by her side. Throughout the times that he had been asked to save two worlds, she had been there for a majority of them. Kari had been a common companion when he was the youngest on his first adventure. She had been his sidekick the second time they went back. Through everything the Digital World, and the human world, had thrown at him, Kari was always by his side. That was his best friend, and he was thankful for that.

"Hey, Kari," he yelled over the music. Kari looked up at him, giving him a happy smile. He smiled back at her, thankful to see her happy. "Thanks for coming with me tonight, and for teaching me how to get drunk."

Kari laughed, placing her other arm around his neck. "It's not a problem, Teeks," Kari replied. "That's what I'm here for."

The big smile soon faded to a smaller one as he looked into her brown eyes. TK knew all about the rumors surrounding them, since they were practically inseparable. The thought of Kari in a romantic sense was always something he brushed off, never giving it much thought. Even so, he had always thought she was beautiful, and deserved the best the world could give her.

TK stopped dancing, causing Kari to stop, too. She looked up at him, confused. The small smile opened.

"Thanks for being my best friend, Kari."

The two smiled back at each other, stuck still in the middle of the room. Before either could say another word, TK reached down to grab her face as Kari placed her hands in his hair. Their lips collided for the first time, slowly in case the other wasn't comfortable with what was happen.

TK pulled away first, the red tint on his cheeks coming from more than just the alcohol. "I'm so sor—"

"We're best friends," Kari interrupted. "That's what we're here for."

TK furrowed his eyebrows, unsure of what she meant by that. Before he could ponder it aloud, Kari dragged him down again, kissing him harder and faster than their first. TK didn't pull away as he did before. His arms wrapped themselves around her; his hand wondered her back, holding her close as if he was afraid to lose her. He was afraid to lose her. She was his best friend; she meant the world to him.

Kari broke the kiss off this time, smirking up at her best friend. "Is there some place we can take this that's more..." Her eyes wondered the room of drunken teenagers. "Secluded?"

TK's eyes widened. "Why?"

Kari pursed her lips together, trying not to laugh. "I think you know why."

The blonde's hands fell from her back, gripping her wrists. "Isn't that a little... weird? I mean, we're very drunk, Kari."

Kari's eyes continued to wander, catching a few glimpses of girls on her dance team looking at the two with proud, shocked faces. She knew both of their teams were the main driving force behind the relationship rumors about the DigiDestined. "They already think we hook up all the time," she pointed out, smirking back at TK. "Why not make it true, just this once?"

TK looked down at Kari with uncertainty. All of the drunken teenage male hormones in his body were ready to pounce her right then and there in the living room, but some small part of his conscious held him back. "But we don't actually feel that way, do we?"

Kari giggled. "Of course not, but you don't have to be in love with someone romantically to have sex with them."

TK was taken aback by her blunt response, finally admitting to what she wanted to do. "I don't want to ruin our friendship," he confessed.

Kari paused for a moment, taking his right hand in her left. "Nothing's going to change. You're still going to be my best friend," she reminded. Her right hand went up to his neck. She leaned up, pressing her lips softly against his neck, leading a trail up to his ear. She felt a shiver run through him as his grip on her hand tightened. "One time couldn't hurt," she whispered into his ear, as close as she could get without touching him.

TK's common sense had been left behind in the bathtub with the empty Fireball bottle. He placed his free hand in the small of her back, trying to stop the tingle going down his spine from his neck. "Kyle's parents are out of town. I'm sure their room is free."

Kari pulled away, smirking at her friend. When TK didn't move, she took a step backwards, stumbling for a second as she dragged him towards the stairs.

TK stopped her before she could put a foot on the steps. "I don't have... anything," he admitted, biting his bottom lip.

Kari rolled her eyes, pulling him onto the stairs. "Kyle does. I've been trying to help him hook up with a girl on the dance team tonight."

TK smiled as the two reached the top of the steps. He followed her as Kari snuck her way into what she figured was Kyle's room. As she searched for the condoms, TK looked around the hallway, noticing it was conveniently empty, much to his relief.

He couldn't believe he was hooking up with someone on his first drunk outing, and with Kari, at that. He was still nervous, but at the same time, he was glad it was Kari out of everyone there. She knew all about him, good and bad. She had always been there for him through everything.

When she turned around to him, holding up a small plastic square, TK remembered just how attractive she really was. Her brunette hair fell perfectly on her shoulders. Her eyes could let up the sky. Her body fell perfectly against his.

He shook his head of the thought. He wasn't going to fall in love with Kari. Even drunk, TK was adamant about that. But still...

Kari pulled him from his thought, leaning her body against him as she pressed her lips to his gently. She pulled away, holding the condom up between the two. "So where's his parents' room?"

TK threw himself down to her face, enveloping her in the most passionate kiss they had shared yet. He pushed her against the hallway wall, running his hands over her sides and under her shirt. Slowly, he began walking her down the hall, only breaking their kiss for air.

They made it to the door. TK opened it, making sure no one else had their idea before pulling her in and shutting the door. The two DigiDestined looked at each other, panting heavily as they tried to catch their breath. TK looked down, a mixture of nervous and lustful expressions arranged on his face. "Are you still sure you want to do this?"

Kari didn't answer. Instead, she reached behind him and twisted the lock on the door, making sure they wouldn't be interrupted. "I'm so sure, TK."

TK smirked back down at her before kissing her again, the taste of cinnamon still fresh on their breaths. He wrapped his arms around her, lifting her up so she was leaning down to kiss him. She wrapped her legs around his waist as he carried her to the bed. TK placed her down and crawled on top of her, placing kisses on her neck just as she had done.

Both couldn't believe they were about to do this. While the idea was joked everywhere around the two, the actual fruition of the event was nearly impossible in their eyes. But as Kari slipped TK's shirt over his head and TK played with the lining of Kari's skirt, the only thought of their mind was why hadn't they done this before.

* * *

 **AN: This was a long chapter, but it was fun to write. I know the ending may alienate some readers, but I assure you, even though I do like them together, I'm not turning this story into a Takari story. Her involvement, however, is important to upcoming chapters.**


	6. Oh No

" _Don't call it a party 'cause it never stops  
Now one is too many but it's never enough"_

 _Oh No-Bring Me The Horizon_

* * *

 _May 15_ _th_

Kari wrapped her arms around her legs, placing her chin on her knees. She sat in the chair for a few quiet seconds, avoiding eye contact with anyone as her story set in. She licked her lips, trying to find the right phrasing, just like TK had that morning.

"When we woke up the next morning, we were so confused. And scared," she confessed. "I don't really remember much after we finished the Fireball. Just some secondhand accounts people told me."

Matt bit the inside of his lip, not wanting to think about his little brother hooking up with his best friend's sister. While the relentless teasing of the group was all in good fun, Matt couldn't help but feel partially responsible for their actions.

Tai pulled Matt out of his thoughts. "So, let me get this straight," he slowly responded, looking up at his sister with worry and disgust on his face. "You guys got drunk... and you fucked TK?"

Kari's face went bright red as she brought her chin up from her knees. Her eyebrows furrowed to show anger mixed with her embarrassment. "I wouldn't put it like that!" she challenged.

"But that's what happened," Matt corrected, looking up from the ground. The anger washed away from Kari's face as she set her chin back down, curling into herself on the chair. Matt wanted to apologize, but he knew it didn't matter. He shook his head and stood up from the couch. "Okay, so you gave him his first drink. Big deal. That doesn't mean you got him to this point."

"And besides," Sora interrupted, trying to calm the younger girl down and keep the blonde's topic on track. "It was a one-time thing. That doesn't mean..."

Sora trailed off when she noticed Kari turned her head away. Her eyes widened at Kari's refusal to acknowledge what she said.

"Oh, my god," Yolei whispered, taking notice of what Sora saw.

Tai looked around at everyone's shock and immediately became confused. He looked over at Matt for guidance, but Matt's gaze was focused on Kari, a stern look compared to the rest.

"How many times?" Sora asked, as gently as she could with the situation she was dealing with.

Kari licked her lips and looked towards her brother. Her heart pounded, not wanting to admit the truth to someone who cared and worried about her so much. She looked over at Matt, who still had a stern look on his face. Quickly, her eyes went back down to the floor. She whispered, tightening her grip on her legs, "I don't know."

From the corner of the room, Davis threw his hands up in frustration, whether it was from Kari's lack of knowledge on the topic or hearing about his long-term crush's sexual escapades was unknown. "How do you not know?" he yelled. "How can you not remember how many times you had sex with him?"

It was Tai's turn to turn bright red, as he finally realized what everyone was shocked about. He looked over at his little sister, curled up into herself, like she was protecting herself from the rest of the DigiDestined.

Kari's face twisted up at Davis' harsh comments. "It's not like we actively tried to hook up," she admitted, her comments more towards Matt and Tai than Davis. "After that first night, we agreed to never do that again. It was too awkward and embarrassing. We honestly had no idea why we even did it."

Kari uncurled herself from the chair, setting her feet on the ground. Her rested her arms on her knees, still not looking up. "We tried to just brush it off and forget about it, but any time we went to a party, we always ended up waking up next to each other. It was the same cycle. We tried not going to the same place, but one of us would always call the other and we ended up right where we stared."

She looked up at Matt, her eyes begging for forgiveness. "It's been going on for months. Any time his friends couldn't get ahold of me, they called you."

Her eyes wandered around the room, hoping to find a comforting face. "I've known this whole time. I knew he was drinking more than normal, but I never thought much of it." She sniffled, trying to hold back tears. "It's my fault for not stopping him. It's my fault for introducing him to alcohol on the first place. I should have told you sooner. I'm so sorry."

Matt bit his lip, looking down at his brother's best friend on the verge of tears. As much as Matt wanted to find a scapegoat for this situation, he knew Kari wasn't to blame. He couldn't keep his innocent image of his little brother forever.

Matt shook his head at her apology. "It's not your fault," he said, looking away from her. He couldn't get through what he needed to say if he looked at her. "You may have showed him the ropes, but TK could have left any time he wanted. He's an adult who can make his own decisions." Matt crossed his arms, coming to terms with his own naive view of his brother. "It's nobody's fault but TK's."

The group remained silent at Matt's decision on the situation. As much as Kari still blamed herself, she knew that Matt was at least somewhat right.

Tai walked over to his sister and wrapped his arms around her shoulders, pulling her in tight. Tai was probably to most shocked out of everyone at Kari's confession of the past six months. He never thought his baby sister would become that kind of person. But now wasn't the time to reprimand her, especially since he himself had a few drunken hookups in his days.

Before anyone could say anything, a knock came from the front door. Izzy sprung up from his seat, seeing as it was his apartment, and walked over to the door as the rest of the DigiDestined positioned themselves casually, as if nothing had happened.

"Hey, TK," Izzy's voice rang out from the door. The door clicked shut as the two walked into the apartment.

TK greeted the older boy before taking a drink of his soda. Once they made it to the living room, TK smiled at everyone, "Hey, guys. Sorry I'm late, apparently." He looked around to notice he was the last one there.

Matt looked over at his little brother. He knew it was time to do something, but now that he was here, he wasn't quite sure what to say. TK was the one with words, the one who knew how to raise everyone's hopes up.

But what did they do when the Crest of Hope had lost hope in himself?

The older blonde pulled himself from his thoughts as he heard TK intermingling with the rest of the DigiDestined. He noticed how they tried to hide the fact that they knew about the younger boy's extracurricular activities, some better than others.

"So now that we're all here, what kind of special Digimon meeting are we in need of?" TK asked, sitting on the arm of the couch. When no one answered, TK began to look around worried. "What's wrong? Did something happen to Patamon?"

"Patamon is fine," Joe assured, his voice stern and pointed.

TK lifted an eyebrow, confused. "Then what's going on?"

A ring of collective excuses echoed through the room, as some of them tried to buy Matt time to bring up the real reason they were there. Matt couldn't say anything though. He still didn't have the right words. He felt a poke on his side and looked down at the chair he was next to.

Kari pointed over towards TK, whispering to her brother and Matt, "Check the soda."

"Why?" Tai whispered back.

Kari bit her lip, giving them a serious look, "If he's as bad at Matt says he is, I can guarantee that soda's spiked. I should know; I taught him that."

Tai flinched at the sureness his sister held in her voice, still not wanting to believe her stories.

Matt, on the other hand, knew she was the person to listen to in this context. He stood up straight and walked over to his brother. "Hey, TK, you mind?" he asked, putting his hand on the bottle. "I'm parched."

TK's eyes went wide as he moved the bottle from Matt's grip. "You probably wouldn't like it," he quickly stated. "It's a new flavor they're testing out."

Once the rest figured out what Matt was doing, no one believed him. Matt, not showing a change in emotion, reached for the bottle again. "I'll be the judge of that."

TK tripped off of the couch's arm, stumbling back into the dining area of the apartment. "Back off, Matt," he exclaimed.

"Give it up, TK," Kari's weakly called from the corner. "They know."

TK's surprised expression faded into embarrassment and fear. "Know what?"

Taking advantage of TK's shock, Matt grabbed the bottle from his brother's hand. Before TK could intervene, Matt quickly opened the top and chugged a few gulps. A familiar burn hit the back of his mouth as he took the bottle from his lips. TK stood defeated in front of his brother, waiting to be outed.

"Are you fucking kidding me, TK?" Matt asked, the anger and disbelief seething through his words. He threw the bottle over towards Tai and Kari, looking back at them. "Taste that," he demanded.

Kari picked up the bottle and did as Matt asked. She only needed a small sip to identify what it was. "It's coke and whiskey. Probably Jack Daniels," she admitted quietly, ashamed that she could identify the alcohol and brand simply by the taste and the drinker.

Matt turned his attention to back to his little brother. "I've had enough of this. Sit down," he commanded, pointing to the coach. TK did as he was told and sat down quietly on the coach. The room stayed silent, not sure if it was any of their places to say anything.

Matt interrupted the silence, pacing in front of TK. "Are you out of your mind?" he asked, throwing his hands out to his side. "It's one thing to drink at parties, but now you're day-drinking? What are you trying to accomplish?"

TK didn't answer. His lips were sealed tightly as he looked down at the floor with indifference.

Matt walked over to his brother and pulled his head up to look in his eyes. Something was off, yet familiar in the startled look of the younger brother. "Joe, come here," Matt said, waiting for the older medical student. He moved TK's face towards Joe. "Do his eyes look dilated?"

Before Joe could answer, TK shoved Matt's hand away from him and fell back into the couch. "Okay, okay, I'm a little drunk," he admitted, the annoyed tone coming through his voice. "So what? You guys have been drunk before."

"Not in the middle of the day!" Matt exclaimed, moving away from his brother. He was now furious more than worried. After all Matt had planned to get TK help, his brother threw another wrench into the plan. He couldn't believe that his brother would be this naive.

"TK, that's not the issue," Sora took over, using her gentlest voice she had. As the unappointed mother of the group, she knew she had to intervene between the two bickering brothers. "Matt told us what's been going on with you. He's very worried, as we all are."

TK scoffed, looking over at Kari instead of Sora. "I appreciate the concern, but there's nothing to be worried about. I know what I'm doing."

Cody piped up, "I don't think you do. You're wandering around town with a bottle full of alcohol when you aren't even supposed to have it."

"And there's a difference between having some drinks at a party and drinking at noon," Ken pointed out.

TK narrowed his eyes. "It's called brunch," he explained, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Oh, a mimosa sounds heavenly right now," Mimi sighed, picking up what TK was trying to compare himself to.

"Coke and whiskey is not brunch," Izzy clarified, annoyed at the comparison.

Matt had enough of his brother's excuses. "TK, you drink a bottle of liquor and a 12 pack every three days. You get so drunk with your teammates that they have to call me to pick you up. You're hooking up with girls and not even remembering how you got there. And when you can't go out, you drink yourself into a stupor alone," he exclaimed, silencing the room.

TK looked over at Kari, who refused to return his gaze. He looked at her like she betrayed him. "You told them?" he asked, disheartened by her confession.

Matt pulled TK's sight away from Kari. "TK, what's going on? We all drank at parties in high school, but never on this level. You're drinking yourself to death, and you can't even legally purchase alcohol."

TK looked up at his brother with discontent. "What is this, some kind of intervention?" he spat.

Matt sighed, folding his arms over his chest as he leaned against the living room wall. "I guess you could say that," he admitted.

"Because I don't need it," TK quickly added, stopping Matt from saying anything else. "I've got this under control. I don't need help."

"Yeah, you do," Kari said, pulling the attention towards her. Tai placed his arm on her shoulders, pulling her in. Kari knew that something was wrong with TK, and whether she started it or not, she knew she had to help end it.

"TK, enough is enough. We've made some mistakes, a lot of mistakes. But this can't be one of them anymore." Kari bit her lip, looking at her best friend's hurt face. "Please believe us; this isn't normal. No one else is drinking as much as you are. No one else is drinking as frequently as you are.

TK remained quiet, looking at the distraught expression on Kari's and Matt's faces. "But Kari, I—"

Kari held her hand up, stopping him. "You need help. You're only seventeen. You shouldn't be this bad."

TK's face hardened. He looked down at his hands, curled up into fists sitting in his lap. He was confused, embarrassed, and still a little hungover from the night before. It didn't make sense to him that Matt and Kari would be saying these things. He knew what he was doing every time. He knew exactly what he meant to do every time he picked up a bottle. His age had nothing to do with his actions, just their consequences.

Finally, the younger blonde looked over at this brother, matching to stoic face that the older brother normally wore. "What does it matter to Matt anyway?" TK thought, holding back the sentence to himself. This could all be over if he stopped needing to be drug back to Matt's apartment.

TK's eyes wandered back to Kari. He stared her down, thinking about everything they had drunkenly done together. If anything, she was just as bad as him, in TK's mind. He didn't understand why he was the one being challenged.

Abruptly, he stood up, fixing his beanie more securely on his head. "Speak for yourself, Kari," he taunted. "You're just as bad as me. I've seen you."

Kari flinched, knowing that a small part of him was right. She had encouraged his behavior that had gotten out of control. But a bigger part of her knew he was wrong. She had no idea how deep TK got until Matt told the group that day. That was something Kari never did. She shook her head, "I've never drank alone, nor during the day," she rebutted.

TK glared, "No, just blacked out at parties, hanging off of me like a limp towel, begging me to take you upstairs and—"

"That's enough!" Matt yelled, stopping TK from going somewhere inappropriate for the conversation. The two younger DigiDestined continued to glare at each other, TK's emotionless face not moving from the tears Kari tried to hold back behind her angry gaze. TK sat back down on the couch.

Matt walked over to TK, grabbing his shoulders to force his brother to look at him. "Who are you? Really, because you're not TK anymore. Look at yourself."

TK bit the inside of his lip, holding back any comments.

Matt continued. "I don't know what you think you're doing, or why you're doing any of this, but it's not you. You're drinking; you're smoking. What's next, TK? What's the next high you'll be looking for?"

The room remained quiet after Matt's exclamations. Not even TK tried to defend himself. He continued to look sternly at his brother, waiting for his next word.

Matt exhaled, knowing that yelling wasn't going to get through to his brother. "Listen," he said, calmly. "I'm worried about you, a lot. You don't know how scary it is to have to see your little brother cross-faded, saying that he thinks he's going to die." His mind went back to the night that started it all, the night a few days before.

Matt paused, giving TK a chance to speak, a chance which the younger blonde denied.  
"I talk to Mom," Matt admitted, causing the stern face of his younger brother to fall. "I know I said I wouldn't, but..." He stopped, still not knowing he right words to say.

"And?" TK asked, a hint of worry in his voice.

"She agreed with me," Matt whispered, frustration and worry tinting his words. "You can't keep this up, TK. We agreed that it's best if we..."

Matt stopped. The words were finally there, but they wouldn't come out. Looking into TK's eyes, Matt realized that planning and doing were two different difficulty levels. No matter what TK did, he was still Matt's little brother. He still had a hard time believing that TK could be this messed up. But that's why he had to do it. Matt knew that he had to help TK, he had to be there for him, even if it upset him.

Matt gulped, holding tightly to his brother's shoulders. "It's best if we admitted you to a rehabilitation facility," he whispered. "We taking you tomorrow morning."

TK stared up at Matt with the same emotionless face he held the whole conversation. "You're sending me to rehab?" TK asked in disbelief.

Matt nodded, releasing his grip on his brother's shoulders. "I'm sorry, TK, but you have to understand. We're worried that you're becoming—"

"An alcoholic?" TK interrupted, narrowing his eyes at his brother. "You really think I'm an alcoholic?"

The room stared at the brothers, not knowing what to do. Kari spoke up, breaking the tension from Matt and TK. "We just want you to be okay," she explained weakly.

TK face faltered for a moment at the hurt in his best friend's voice before returning back to his angry expression. "Okay? You guys don't even know what makes me feel okay," he said, standing up from the couch. "For once in my life, I found something to drown out the noise. The nightmares stop and I can sleep at night. I don't care if I wake up in a puddle of my own vomit; at least I wasn't scared."

He paced around to the back of the couch, leaning his hand on the back. "And I'm finally just a normal kid. I don't have to worry about any of these problems." His hand spread out to point at the whole group. "I'm just trying to live a normal life, not a DigiDestined one."

TK's eyes widened at what he said, knowing it was his slight intoxication that led to his word vomit. He looked over at Matt, who's normal stoic face had fallen to concern. TK hadn't meant to worry his brother, nor had he meant to say what he had. He himself had never really confronted the reasons why he drank, and he wasn't prepared to do so.

Quickly, his face returned to its emotionless state. He turned around towards the door, walking as fast as he could without running. "I've had enough of this. I'm fine. I'm leaving."

Before Matt could run after him, Kari grabbed onto his sleeve. Matt turned around at the younger girl with fire in his eyes. "Kari, let go of me! I have to go after my brother!"

"Wait, Matt," Kari begged, keeping her grip. "You don't know where's he's going to go, but I do."

Matt stopped pulling on his sleeve. As much as he wanted to run after his brother, he knew Kari knew better about this situation than he did.

Davis interrupted them, reminding them that the rest of the DigiDestined were there, too. "What did he mean by "a DigiDestined life?'" he pondered, looking towards the older kids for guidance.

Izzy took over, analyzing the situation. "While we were all just kids when we first went into the Digital World, TK was so much younger. In fact, he's spent over half of his life knowing about the Digital World," he calculated.

"Well, so did Kari," Tai pointed out.

Joe shook his head, backing Izzy's analysis. "She was only there for half of it. She didn't see us battle Devimon."

"Or watch Angemon sacrifice himself," Mimi added.

Matt sighed, his gaze looking out at the city where so many Digimon battles had taken place. "It makes sense now," he murmured. "He was just a little kid. He's traumatized to this day."

Sora jumped up from her seat. "We have to find him."

"We've waited too long," Yolei cried, frustrated. "Who knows where he went?"

Kari spoke up, pulling on Matt's sleeve again. "I know where he's going to be tonight."

Matt didn't ask any further questions. He hit him quota for answers that day. He knew he would just have to trust Kari.

"Then we have to go there, tonight."

* * *

 **AN: While I've given hints, the real reason for TK's problem has yet to be fully discovered. I can't wait to share it with you guys. If you want, you should look up the song that I prefaced this chapter with. It's the song that fits the best with all of the chapters that this story will contain. I almost changed the name of the story because of this song.**


	7. Six Shots to Falling in the End

" _Behind every mask lies a man who can't live in his own skin.  
He lives by the flask; he bathes in his past  
And he dies by his own sins."_

 _[ &]Delinquents-Woe, Is Me_

* * *

 _May 8th_

Matt stumbled through the doorway of his apartment, his legs barely being able to hold up his weight anymore. Despite being only twenty-one, Matt felt more like he was eighty-one. Never had a concert performance been that difficult on his body.

He walked into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water, knowing he would need it throughout the night to rehydrate. He twisted off the top and drank half of it in one gulp before plopping down at the kitchen table for a quick rest. If he was lucky, he would be able to get up again eventually and walk to bed.

Taking a look around the kitchen, everything was exactly where he had left it: dirty pots and pans soaking in the sink, clean dishes on the drying rack, and a few bottles of pain killers on his counter top. Matt's face remained emotionless as he remembered why he hadn't put those bottles away. TK had been there a few days before after one of his drunken escapades and needed them in the morning. Hell, Matt could use one now.

Forcing himself off of the chair, Matt stood on his sore legs and reached over for the pain killers. His eyes darted over the warning label, although he had it almost memorized. He read over everything he ever gave his hungover brother, just in case it wouldn't be safe for him to take with alcohol in his system.

As Matt popped two pills, his thoughts went back to TK. Despite the concert being in town, TK had told Matt he was staying in that night to rest up, since he hadn't been feeling well that day. His brother assured him it wasn't a hangover, though he gave Matt very little reason to believe him. But Matt couldn't quite counter him, no matter how worried he was about the boy's safety.

The blonde set the bottle back on the counter and grabbed his water. Those weren't thoughts he wanted to preoccupy his mind with at the moment. All he could think about was his bed and going to sleep.

He stopped by the bathroom first, knowing he needed a shower after the hot lights of the stage made him practically sweat through his shirt. He stripped down after turning the water to the correct warm temperature. Steam was already building on the mirror, indicating that the time was right.

Matt stepped in, letting the hot water run down his cramped legs. A small smile came to his face, knowing that this was the best his body, and his mind, could feel that night. His mind was erased of every thought except for how great the shower felt on his sore muscles.

He stood there until he felt he had been in the shower way too long. Even though he could have fallen asleep right there, he knew it would be best for him and his water bill to go to bed.

The water stopped and Matt grabbed the towel from the back of the door, drying himself off as quickly as he possibly could to get into bed. Before he could get dressed for the night, he noticed a blinking light from his cell phone. His eyes went narrow, wondering who was calling him at such a late hour.

TK. He flipped open his phone to find two voicemails from his little brother. "Shit," he whispered, hinting the annoyance in his voice. Matt figured TK must have gone out again and gotten way too drunk for his own good.

Something felt off this time thought. Normally if TK needed to be picked up, someone else would call him, not TK himself. It was strange that Matt would be receiving a call directly from TK at this late an hour.

Matt didn't bother listening to the voicemails. If anything, they were most likely just incoherent ramblings by a drunk high schooler about why his only brother didn't answer the phone. Instead, he called TK back.

A few rings went by before someone picked up on the other line. "Matt," TK's voice whispered weakly on the other end.

Matt rolled his eyes, practically smelling the alcohol dripping from his voice. "Yes, TK?"

The only sound for a few seconds were some slow wheezes from the other end. Matt dropped the annoyed tone from his voice. This was something different.

TK finally spoke up through the hoarse breathes. "Matt… can you come to Mom's place? I… I need you. I… I need my brother."

Through the spacing, Matt could tell his brother was drunk, but at his mother's apartment? That was a first that Matt knew of. He grabbed clean shorts and a shirt, and rushed to put them on. TK sounded like he needed help and, no matter what hour it was, Matt would feel horrible if he didn't come for him.

"Okay, TK, I'm on my way," he hurried, hopping on one foot to get on his shoe while trying to maintain the phone between his ear and shoulder. "When did you get home? Where were you all night?"

TK coughed before giving a weak reply, "I haven't left my room all night."

Matt paused. He hadn't left his room all night. That thought swam through his head. TK got drunk at home. "Okay, who was with you tonight?" Matt asked, hoping the worry he was having didn't come through his voice.

Another cough came through the line. "No one. I've been by myself."

The older brother's heart dropped, thinking of TK drinking alone in his room. This wasn't right.

Before he could have another thought, TK coughed again and Matt could hear gagging followed by the splatter of a liquid onto the hardwood floor. Matt cringed, thinking about the vomit TK had just thrown down.

"Okay, TK, I'm on my way," Matt assured, grabbing his keys from the dresser before running to his front door.

"Okay," TK whispered through his groans.

The line was silent for a few second, but Matt was afraid to hang up. He took off down the stairs of his apartment complex, knowing he could get down before the elevator even made it up. Huffing, he spoke into the phone, "Hey, TK, stay on the line with me. I'm leaving my complex. I'm on my way."

"Thank you, Matt," TK's voice murmured through the phone, as if he had his face buried in something.

"TK, TK," Matt begged, running down the street. "Stay on your side. Get your face out of whatever it was in."

"But Matt, I'm finally comfy," TK whined. His voice came through perfectly, telling Matt he had listened.

Matt smiled, having to get one laugh in that night. "That's a good brother."

The rest of the run time was spent with Matt occasionally asking TK to speak to him and TK replying some vague, drunken response. By the time Matt made it to his mother's apartment building, TK had already asked for Patamon three times and asked when they were going to the Digital World again.

Matt fumbled with his keys, looking for his copy of the apartment key his mother had given him for emergencies. Finding the right one, he unlocked the door and ran into TK's room.

The room was worse than he had imagined. Avoiding the clothes and various other teenage boy knickknacks lying around, Matt noticed the empty and half-filled beer cans laying in his bed. The sheets were stained with what Matt could only assume was alcohol and vomit. The air was filled with the smell of hard liquor and something familiar that Matt couldn't place. TK was curled up on his bed, facing the window. Matt walked around to that side of the bed, careful to avoid the pile of puke on the floor.

"Hey, TK," Matt whispered, placing a hand on his brother's shoulder as he sat down on the side of the bed. "I'm here, okay?"

TK moaned in response, staying perfectly still on his side. Matt sighed, looking around for something he needed to do. His eyes went towards the vodka bottle TK was cradling for his life. With his free hand, Matt tried to wedge the bottle from his brother.

With an annoyed groan, TK held onto the bottle. "No, don't," he groaned, scrunching up his face like the movement was going to make him throw up again.

"I'm not taking it from you. I'm just moving it out of the way," Matt explained, winning in the battle to remove the bottle. TK was too tired and intoxicated to fight back very well. After successfully prying the bottle away, Matt sat it on the bedside table. It was a small bottle, but it was half empty. "Was this an old bottle?"

TK tried to shake his head. "No, I opened it tonight," he explained. Then his face scrunched up again. "Matt, give it back."

Matt ran his hand over his brother's shoulder, trying his best to calm him down. "No, TK, there's no reason to sleep with it."

"But Matt, I need it."

The older blonde cringed. He stopped his hand and stood up from the bed. "No, you don't, TK," he firmly reprimanded. Looking down at the side table, Matt took notice to what was giving off the familiar smell he couldn't figure out earlier. Right beside where he sat the bottle was an unfinished joint, the formerly lit end burning a mark into the table top.

Matt let out an audible sigh as he opened TK's window, hoping to get some of the smell out. His thoughts were racing, but he had nothing to say. Was something so wrong with his little brother that he needed to get cross-faded by himself?

The only thing Matt felt he could do was get the room as clean as he could for that hour of the night. He gave TK's drunken ramblings quick validations as he gathered up the beer cans scattered around his bed. Nine cans to be exact, with two of them not completely finished. He placed them in the box and set it by the door, noting to take them out when he left.

Returning from the hall bathroom with paper towels and an empty wastebasket, Matt noticed TK had stopped talking. He walked over to the window side of the bed where the vomit was and gave his brother a once-over. The younger one's eyes were closed, but his face looked like he was in pain.

Placing the wastebasket under TK's head on the floor, Matt shook him gently, just in case he might throw up. "Hey, TK," Matt whispered, setting down the paper towels over the puke. "Is everything okay?"

TK didn't respond right away. His breaths became louder and deeper as he tried to calm himself down, but it didn't help. His whole torso was moving, trying to help him breathe better. "Matt, I messed up," he finally whispered between his weird breathing patterns.

It took everything in him for the older brother not to roll his eyes. Instead, he put on the most caring voice he could have given his brother. "Well, you are pretty cross-faded. Don't think I didn't notice your joint." He sat down, patting the paper towels with his foot. His hand went for TK's back and began rubbing it. "And I picked up nine beer bottles. Those and that half bottle of vodka would mess anyone up."

TK kept his eyes shut. Matt could feel him trying to breathe under his hand. The occasional shiver ran up the younger boy's spine, causing his body to jolt. "No, like, I made a mistake," TK explained, his voice shaking.

Matt continued to rub his back, not saying a word. While he was relieved TK realized he made a mistake with what he did that night, he wasn't out of the woods yet. He didn't say anything, hoping the younger brother would continue to come to the conclusion himself.

"I know I drank too much," TK whispered, hearing the weakness in his voice. "And I know I shouldn't have smoked tonight, too. But Matt, you–"

He couldn't finish his sentence before a violent jolt took over his body. He threw himself forward, hanging off the side of the bed. Matt quickly positioned the wastebasket under TK's head just in time for the younger brother to vomit again.

Matt caught his breath after TK's violent expulsion, thankful that he had gotten the basket in time and that TK was getting rid of some of the alcohol in his stomach. He let out a sigh as he rubbed his little brother's back, comforting him as best as he could. He knew TK would feel better after throwing up again, but the constant spasms going through his body scared the older brother.

TK had stopped throwing up, but continued to lay over the edge of the bed. He didn't have the energy to pull himself back up. He coughed, "Matt…" Another ball of post-vomit salvia dripped from his lips. "Can you help me up?"

Matt didn't say a word. He placed his hands under TK and lifted his head from the bucket. Resting his head back down on the pillow, he took one of the leftover clean paper towels and wiped off TK's mouth.

TK shook his head, trying to grab the towel. "You don't have to baby me," he whispered, his hands missing the towel completely.

Matt couldn't even find the humor he normally would have in his brother's sense of drunken independence. Now was the time to be serious. TK did need to be babied at the moment, and that was the issue. Matt exhaled loudly, not sure how to respond. He sat still the edge of TK's bed, keeping careful watch over him.

TK lay on his back for the time being, knowing that he would eventually have to be moved to his side. But he couldn't do it himself. His whole body seethed with nausea and pain. He felt like he was more vomit than human at that point. Head spinning, stomach turning, this was what he had chosen to do to himself. TK knew he had no one else to blame. But he had never felt this bad before. Coupled with his normal drunken reaction was sharp pains in his chest and a labored breathing pattern. While he was too intoxicated to know what was wrong, he knew that something was, in fact, wrong.

Matt took notice of the tear forming around TK's closed eyelids. His brother's body lay stiff in front of him, the pain almost as visible as the stain-covered shirt he was wearing. Matt didn't move, not knowing what to do. He had taken care of TK after a few too many drinks before, but he had never acted like he was actually hurting. The worse pain he had seen him drunkenly in was his bruised abdomen after a night of stomach contractions over the bathroom toilet. Matt was the most scared he had ever been for his brother.

TK groaned, moving his hands from his sides to his chest. He didn't know what he was doing, but granted, he barely knew what was going on. His face scrunched up, holding in another painful groan. Eventually, he felt the warmth of tears fall from his eyes down the side of his face. "Matt…" he whispered again.

Seeing his brother begin to cry, Matt felt himself harden. He knew that whatever TK was going through emotionally, he had to be the hard one, the calculating one. Still, he felt bad watching his brother in that much pain. He placed a hand on one of TK's hands. "TK?"

TK licked his lips, trying to get the words out through his irregular breathing. He felt his body shake with the shivers going down his spine. He couldn't open his eyes, knowing that if he did, the room around him would spin like his stomach was. Being intoxicated wasn't anything new to him, but he had never felt that bad before. He was scared.

"Matt, I feel like I'm dying."

The older brother felt his breath stop, like he had been punched in the gut. His face remained hard, but his mind was racing in worry. TK had never been in this bad of a condition before. He wondered if it was from the cross-intoxication of alcohol and marijuana. His eyes darted back over the vodka bottle, estimating how many ounces TK could have drunk from that, not to mention the approximately eight cans of beer. It was more than enough to do him in without the high from the joint he smoked.

The thought of alcohol poisoning crossed his mind. Ever since TK had started showing up on his doorstep drunk out of his mind, Matt had begun looking up everything possible related to alcoholics and alcohol poisoning. He knew what signs he had to look for.

"You're not dying, TK" Matt reassured, though he wasn't sure himself.

Matt took note of TK's irregular breathing, on sign he remembered. He reached over and placed his fingers on TK's neck, trying to find his pulse. His heart rate didn't seem to be slow, but he did notice that his skin was a bit clammy. He placed a hand on TK's forehead to check his temperature, just like their mother used to do. Matt wasn't quite sure how accurate this test would be, but he thought TK felt a bit warm. Warm was the exact opposite of what alcohol poisoning indicated.

With only half of the symptoms Matt checked for accounted, he felt a little relieved. He wasn't cleared yet, but it wasn't a sure thing. He knew TK needed real help.

"TK, I think you're fine, but just to be sure, we need to wake up Mom and take you to the hospital," Matt calmly spoke, trying his hardest not to startle his brother.

As Matt shifted his body to stand up, TK's hand quickly moved to grab Matt's arm. He was too weak to pull him back down, but the action alone got Matt to remain where he was. Tears streamed down the younger brother's face as he held onto his big brother's arm. His eyes were finally open, begging Matt not to leave his room. "No, Matt, please don't tell Mom."

Matt sat back down. His hard face fell looking down at the broken boy that was his baby brother. "But TK, you could be hurt. We have to get you help."

TK's face looked heartbroken and scared. "I'll be fine; you said so yourself," he cried, keeping eye contact as best as he could with everything spinning. "Just don't wake her up. She doesn't deserve this."

Matt wanted to yell back at him, tell him that she didn't deserve to wake up to her son dead either, but no words would come out. Seeing his brother finally break down made his heart stop. He could tell TK was in more emotional pain than physical pain, what it was from, he still didn't know. Matt knew he had to get TK some help. What he didn't know was what kind of help he needed.

It was against his better judgement. He knew he should have picked his brother up and taken him to the closest emergency room in that moment. But looking down at the distraught, red eyes of his baby brother, he couldn't do it. TK was hurting more than Matt could understand. He only showed half of the symptoms, which was more than enough evidence for Matt to do the responsible thing, but his body wouldn't let him.

He sighed, pulling TK's hand off of him. He nodded, "Okay, I won't wake her," he promised, standing up from the bed. "But I'm staying here tonight, in this room. I want you on your side facing the bucket. I don't think you have anything else in your stomach, but I don't want to take the risk."

TK's eyes closed again as he shifted onto his left side. Matt tiptoed quietly down the hall to the bathroom, where he grabbed a washcloth and soaked it in cold water. It was routine at this point, but tonight felt different. Matt knew he shouldn't have given into his brother. He knew he should be carrying him out of the apartment building at that moment. But he couldn't.

Coming back into TK's room, he ran the cold rag over TK's face and neck, trying to wipe away the sweat. He left it on the back of his brother's neck as he laid down on the other side of the bed. If he couldn't take TK anywhere, he at least wanted to be next to him in case he needed something.

Matt lay on his back, staring up at the ceiling. He couldn't believe what he was doing. This wasn't right, having to babysit his cross-faded seventeen-year-old brother. He had been saying there was something wrong with TK for a while now, but with the events that happened that night, he knew he had to act on it.

Matt felt TK move slightly from the other side of the bed. "Matt," TK whispered over his shoulder. "Thank you for being here. I'm sorry I'm a fuck-up."

The older brother couldn't say anything back. Nothing could have prepared him for everything that had just happened. He felt horrible for what his brother was going through, but he had to take matters into his own hands. As far as he knew, he was the only one aware of what TK was doing. TK was going to be upset with him, but he had to tell their mother what was going on. TK needed help more than he realized. This wasn't right for him to be doing at any age, let alone in high school.

Matt looked over at his little brother, curled up in a ball of intoxication and pain, and mouthed, "I'm sorry, TK." His mind was made up. He was telling their mother in the morning.

* * *

 **AN: This is such an important chapter, so I hope you enjoyed in. I've had this chapter written for such a long time now, and I'm very excited to share it with you. I think I'll have two more chapters at the very least left. Updates may been infrequent this week, as I have a wedding to go to this weekend. I'll try my best to get at least one more chapter up before this weekend.**


	8. The Hills Have Eyes

" _I only love it when you touch me, not feel me  
When I'm fucked up, that's the real me"_

 _The Hills-The Weeknd_

* * *

 _May 15_ _th_

Matt looked uncomfortable to be surrounded by drunken high schoolers all out for a smoke break. He was twenty-one and definitely felt out of place. The atmosphere felt very juvenile to him, yet it reminded him of his days party-hopping with Tai. But he was being escorted through the crowd by the wrong Kamiya.

Matt kept a close eye on where Kari was leading him. This was never a situation he thought he would be in: a high school party with his best friend's little sister. But now wasn't the time to over-analyze. No matter how uncomfortable he was, he had to trust that Kari knew where his brother was.

Since TK walked out of his spontaneous intervention, Matt had spent the remainder of that day with Kari, discussing what she knew about his brother's party habits. Kari knew that one of his teammates would be throwing a party that weekend at his parent's beach house. TK had been planning the trip all week. It was supposed to be the party of the year, according to Kari. Matt knew they had to go there.

Before they left, they made a stop at his mother's house, hoping that maybe TK was still there preparing. Unfortunately, he wasn't, nor were any of his secret stashes of alcohol and marijuana that Kari knew about. They figured he must have taken all of it with him. When asked, their mother said he told her he was going on a team-building trip with the basketball team. Neither Matt not Kari had the heart to break the actual trip plans to her.

"Explain to me again why we had to dress up for this," Matt asked, looking down at the attire Kari had put him in. It's not that he didn't mind beachwear, but the boating sandals were a bit much for him.

Kari rolled her eyes, hoisting her backpack higher on her shoulders. "Well, it would be a little obvious if we just showed up to a beach party in normal attire, now wouldn't it?" she explained. "Don't think that I'm happy about walking around like this with you either."

Matt glared down at the girl in front of him, resenting her remark. But he did have to admit that it was a little weird for him to be going to a party with an underage girl in a bikini top and beach shorts, regardless of who she was.

Before they had left TK's house, Kari had reached into a drawer of TK's dresser, pulling out her beach outfit she currently had on. Matt wanted to question why TK had been storing that for her, but decided instead to ignore it, opting to believe that they had planned to go together and start off at TK's.

When Kari explained that Matt would have to look the part too, he felt uneasy. He wasn't going to actually enjoy himself; he was going to rescue his brother. But he knew what Kari said held some truth: if he wanted in, he would have to look the part.

Matt cringed as the sand got underneath his feet in his sandals. He hated the beach and everything about it. A cloud of smoke hit him in the face, noting it was a mixture of regular cigarettes and marijuana. He rolled his eyes at the cliché.

Before they reached the steps up to the house, Kari stopped, holding a hand out to Matt's chest. She swung her bag off of her shoulder and opened it up, revealing a few beer bottles and a flask.

"Kari, are you kidding me?" Matt seethed, finding it unbelievable that she would bring alcohol to TK's addiction rescue.

"Listen," Kari angrily begged, pulling out two bottles. "They're decoys. No one will ask questions if we hold them." She shoved one into his chest. "If I know TK, chances are we'll find him before he finds us, so we'll have time to hide the bottles from him."

Matt bit the inside of his lip, giving the younger girl a frustrated glare. He knew she was right, but it still upset him.

Kari gave Matt a quick smile, popping the top off of both of their bottles. "Just trust me. We'll find him."

The older man didn't say anything. With a quick nod, he followed Kari up the stairs to the front door of the beach house.

* * *

TK slammed back another shot, not even feeling the burn in the back of his throat. As soon as his teammates picked him up from his apartment, he had begun drinking again. His face scowled at the reminder of his first drinking attempt of the day, stopped by his brother in front of the rest of the DigiDestined.

It didn't make sense to him. He had everything under control. TK looked around at the other people there, noting that they were just as bad as he was. What was the difference between him and them?

"Hey, TK, come outside. It's ready again," Tyler called, stumbling in from the back deck.

TK smiled, pouring himself another shot before making his way to the deck. Once outside, he sat down on the deck chair and knocked back his liquor. He had lost count of how many he had had that night.

Kyle took a turn from the bong first, flicking the lighter a few times before it would start. TK laughed at his friend, who was obviously gone. It was his third rip that night, not to mention how much alcohol he had consumed. TK wished he was on that level.

The team had been ecstatic when TK brought his whole stash. He hadn't informed any of them of his brother's plan, but he had to get rid of it before the morning. He knew they would go through his room to find anything to incriminate him. No matter how much he tried to reason, he knew his family would take him to rehab the next day.

TK's turn came up, and as he lit the end and inhaled, he tried to take everything in for the last time in a while. His lungs burned as he refused to exhale, trying to get the most out of his last high for a while.

A while; he kept reminding himself over and over that night. All he had to do was convince the people at the rehab center that he was fine and he would be back home and back to where he felt comfortable. His mind had raced with that thought the whole night to not bum himself out.

Finally exhaling, TK let out a single cough before passing the bong over. He patted Kyle's back, standing up from the chair. "Hey, I'm getting a drink. You need anything?" Kyle slurred a few words, none that were clear. TK shook his head, knowing his friend slumped over in his seat was done for the night.

TK wobbled his unsteady legs back into the house and over to the bag he had brought. He looked inside, seeing that he still had some beers left. He pulled one out and uncapped it, quickly chugging it as fast as he could. He didn't know when he would get this opportunity again, so he had to make his last party count.

The beer was done. TK left the bottle on the nearest counter in dining room, where a game of beer pong was set up between two cheerleaders and two soccer players. He smirked at the match, seeing that the cheerleaders were winning, and made his way to the kitchen.

Finding his vodka, he poured another shot. Before he could drink it, he bit his lip. Something didn't feel right to him. TK pulled out his phone and flipped it open. He scrolled through the contacts until he found her name. His finger wavered over the call button before he slammed his phone shut again. No matter how much he wanted her there, he knew he couldn't call Kari. She had been there that afternoon, against him. His mind slipped back to what she had said, scoffing at the hypocritical analysis. Finally, he took his shot, pushing his best friend out of his head.

TK was on his own that night: five beers, an unknown number of shots, and three bong rips in, with an unmeasurable number more to come. He set the alcohol back in his bag and leaned against the wall, letting it all soak in. His final night before his time of sobriety was upon him. His head felt light, but his mind weighed heavy. It didn't feel right. He was drunk, but the thought kept perplexing him. His eyes went back down to his bag, wondering if one more shot for the time would calm his nerves. Shaking his head, he decided against it. He knew he had to give himself a few more minutes.

TK closed his eyes and placed his arms back on the wooden wall, letting the bumping ridges take over his senses. He would miss the sensation of intoxication; it made him feel alright. But what made him feel wrong in the first place?

TK shook his head again, not wanting to think about it anymore. It was frustrating. He was just trying to have a good time. Why couldn't his mind stop wandering back to that place?

"Hey, dude, you okay?" a voice pulled TK from his thoughts. An older man, maybe around his brother's age, stood in front of him, his hands on his pockets. His body faced towards the staircase, but his head was directed at the blonde.

TK nodded, reaching down for another beer. "Yeah, I'll be fine. Just gotta get a little more drunk before they come to take me away," he scoffed, not believing he had told a total stranger that.

The man raised an eyebrow and turned his body towards the boy. "Take you away? Hey, wait, aren't you the guy that brought a huge stash of alcohol and weed?"

TK smirked, saluting the man with a flick of his pointer finger. "At your service. I'm just trying to get rid of it before tomorrow," he explained.

"What's tomorrow?" the man asked.

Without thinking, TK shrugged, "My mom and brother found out what I've been doing. They're sending me to rehab tomorrow." His mind questioned why he had just told that to a complete stranger when he hadn't even mentioned it to his friends. His eyes went wide as he took another drink. "But no one else knows that so..."

The older man laughed once and nodded. "It's between us." His head nodded towards the bag on the ground. "So you're trying to get as fucked up as you can before then?"

TK grinned, tipping his bottle towards the other man. "That's the plan," he smirked.

The older man nodded, giving quick validations. "Well, if you're really looking to get a good high, meet me upstairs in about ten," he invited, lowering his voice. "We got some good shit up there that it seems like you could use."

Before TK could ask what he meant by that, the older man patted the boy's shoulder. "Name's Evan. Just say I sent you when you knock on the door."

Still confused, he nodded, saying his name quickly before the other man could walk away. His mind wandered again, remembering the last time something like that happened. It was Tyler's brother with Everclear. He couldn't begin to even guess what they had upstairs that was more potent than that. But whatever it was, TK knew he had to try it.

"Go big or go home," TK whispered to himself, taking another long chug of his beer.

* * *

Matt's eyes kept wandering the crowd of people inside the beach house. None of them in that particular room had their signature blonde locks. TK wasn't in the crowd. He sighed, turning back to Kari, who had found some friends in the first room they had walked in. His eyes rolled as he listened to them laugh about something he didn't catch.

"So Kari, you haven't introduced us to your friend," one of the girls giggled, looking over at Matt with a face he could only guess was trying to flirt with him.

Kari waved her hand at the man behind her. "Oh, this is Matt. He's an old friend of mine," she explained, leaving out the part about his relationship to TK.

The other girl raised an eyebrow and nudged Kari's side. "So I see TK isn't your target tonight," she winked.

Both DigiDestined blushed, embarrassed at even the thought that Kari brought Matt to hook up with. "No, no, no," Kari assured, shaking her free hand. "It's not like that. He's just a friend."

The girl rolled their eyes, taking a drink through their smirks. "It wasn't like that with TK either," one girl laughed.

Fully red in the face, Matt decided to interrupt and break away from the topic. "Speaking of which, have you seen TK here tonight?"

The smirks on their faces dropped, confused at the question. They pondered it over for a moment before one of them pointed towards the deck. "Last time I saw him, he went outside. Tyler brought his bong and TK supplied the weed."

Matt pursed his lips, grabbing onto Kari's wrist with his free hand. "Shit," he murmured, pulling Kari away from the conversation.

Kari yelled a quick goodbye to the confused girls as Matt dragged her into the kitchen. Before he could pull her to the deck, Kari snatched her arm away from Matt, causing him to turn around. "We aren't going to find TK by just barging in everywhere," Kari whispered through her teeth, giving Matt a serious look. "If we ask people where he is, they'll be sure to tell him we were looking for him." Kari sighed, scanning the room as she took a sip of her beer.

Still angry, Matt exhaled, nodding in agreement. "Fine," he seethed, stopping in his tracks. He looked down at what she was drinking and quickly snatched it from her hand. "And stop that. We're here to stop an alcoholic, not be one."

Kari took the bottle back, holding it down by her side now. "Right, sorry," she apologized, still looking around for the other blonde brother. "Got caught up in the moment."

Matt sighed, brushing off her apology. TK was nowhere in sight in that room either. His eyes darted out towards the glass deck door. "Those girls said he was out on the deck," he remembered. "We should probably look there."

Kari nodded, leading Matt towards the deck. "Right," she responded.

* * *

TK stumbled down the upstairs hall, trying to find the room Evan had told him to go to. He was thoroughly intoxicated, but knew he could still use whatever boost they had. His mind hadn't stopped replaying the actions of the day, the looks on his friends' faces. The vague nagging in the back of his mind about why he was drinking wouldn't stop popping up.

Voices came from behind the last door on the hall, people talking, words TK couldn't exactly make out. Cautiously, he knocked on the door, hoping he had the right place.

The voices went down to a hush. Footsteps came towards the door. "Who is it?" one of the voices demanded, shaking TK.

"It's, uh, TK," he answered, noticing how childish his voice sounded compared to the man behind the door. "Evan told me to come up."

He heard Evan's voice from behind the door, yelling for the doorman to let TK in. The door swung open, revealing a group of people sitting around a glass coffee table, probably brought up from living room. Evan sat on the opposite side of the room, raising his hands up, excited for the boy to be there.

"TK, nice to see ya, man," he greeted, patting a seat right next to him. "How ya feeling?"

Cautiously in the room of strangers, TK made his way over to the familiar face, stumbling as he tried to sit down next to him. "I'm very drunk," TK admitted, his eyes wide as he surveyed the people looking at him. "And very high, too."

The group laughed, all seeming to be comfortable around the newcomer. It made TK feel a little more at ease, but still confused as to what they had up there.

Evan leaned back on his hands and smiled at the younger boy. "So you still wanna try something new?" he asked.

TK bit the inside of his lip, suddenly unsure. He was the right amount of intoxicated he liked to be, but he knew this would be his last time in a while. He looked around the room, unable to see any cups or glasses. His thoughts on a new liquor seemed to be wrong. He sighed again, turning his attention back to the older man. It was his last night of drunken freedom. "Might as well try it," TK shrugged, trying to hold himself steady on the ground. "Whatever, uh, it is."

The group laughed as Evan reached into his pocket. TK watched as he pulled out a plastic bag and set it on the counter. The blonde's blue eyes went wide at the sight and his heart started racing more than it had that night. He never had expected this to be the next high the older man was talking about.

TK sat stiff as Evan dumped out a small section of the contents of the bag into a line. A girl across the table handed him a plastic card, letting Evan use it to create a perfect line.

As Evan handed him a rolled up dollar bill, TK gulped. "Is that cocaine?" he nervously asked.

* * *

Matt sighed, getting no information out of the semi-conscious boys laying out on the deck. He looked over at Kari as she hid the bong by the side of the house. She turned around, picking up her beer from the ground with an uncomfortable look.

"That gave us nothing," she sighed, eyeing the blabbering teenagers in their deck seats.

Matt stared out at the beach, listening the waves crash along the shore over the music playing inside. He hoped TK wasn't out there. He felt exactly like he did that time he lost TK in the Digital World. Except this time, he had no Digimon to scout the area with him.

His thoughts turned to his own Digimon, Gabumon. He let out a small laugh, knowing Gabumon would be able to sniff out TK in an area this small.

Patamon also drifted into his mind. His brother's Digimon was so loyal, always ready to help even if he was the smallest one. Patamon was a perfect match for TK. The smile Matt had thinking about Gabumon faded. How was he supposed to tell Patamon what happened to his Digital Partner?

"Matt?" Kari pulled him from his thoughts. He turned around, giving the younger girl his full attention. "We may have a problem."

Matt's eyebrows furrowed, his face turning serious. "What do you mean?"

Kari opened her mouth, the words not coming out. She didn't want to believe it, not even enough to check, but she knew her best friend, and she knew what TK would be doing that night. "I just overheard someone saying there's a coke dealer here."

Matt's eyes widened. "You don't think he..."

Kari stammered, giving Matt a scared look. "I don't want to, but it's possible."

Matt quickly tried to place his bottle on the ledge of the deck, but missed completely. The bottle slammed down to the ground, shattering glass and beer on the deck. He wasn't bothered by it. He raced towards the door, knowing he had to find his brother before he made a huge mistake.

"Wait, Matt, you don't even know where you're going," Kari yelled after him, nervously shoving the shattered glass off of the deck and into the sand.

"I'll search every room, Kari!" Matt exclaimed, turning around, impatiently waiting for her. "Come on; we don't have much time! He could already be doing it by now."

Kari finally caught up the older brother, grabbing onto the back of his tank top. "It's upstairs," she informed him, pulling him in the direction of the stairs. "Last door on the left."

Matt disregarded how she knew that, opting to just follow her anyway. The two DigiDestined bolted up the stairs, flying passed party-goers who looked on with widen eyes. A whistle rang out behind them, someone figuring the two were looking for a private room for a few minutes. Both ignored this normally revolting action, running to the designated door.

Matt didn't even bother knocking. He slammed his body into the locked door, breaking the lock off. Kari and Matt flung themselves into the room to a sight they were hoping not to see.

TK held himself on his knees, torso bent over the glass table. The rolled-up dollar was pressed to his nostril at the end of the white line. He finished his last snort of cocaine before he looked up to see the shocked faces of his brother and his best friend.

TK sniffled, feeling the grain sting the inside of his nose. "Matt? Kari? What are you doing here?" he asked, his words becoming slurred.

Kari couldn't move. Never in her life did she ever think she would see cocaine in real life, much less TK snorting cocaine. Her face wouldn't change from her shocked look.

Matt, on the other hand, jumped over the table, tackling his brother to the ground. He pinned TK's shoulders down, but TK wasn't trying to resist. Matt looked down at his brother, fire coming from his eyes. He heard feet shuffle behind him, figuring it was other people in the room leaving. He didn't care; he would deal with them later.

TK looked up at his brother with wide eyes. Adrenaline flowed through his system, but he didn't have much energy to push Matt off of him. He looked into his older brother's eyes with a confused wonder. "Whoa," was the only word he could whisper.

Matt didn't know what to say. It wasn't everyday he caught his brother doing hard drugs. He didn't have to, thankfully, but Kari spoke up for him.

"TK, what the fuck?" she screamed, finally able to come over the brothers.

TK looked over at her with the same dazed look he gave Matt. "What is this?" he asked, feeling too many different sensations run through him.

Matt stayed on top of his brother, afraid to get up. "What were you thinking?" he asked, knowing he wasn't going to get an answer. "Do you know you just did cocaine?"

TK nodded as best as he could from the ground, sill not saying a word. Matt remained silent, taking note of TK's body reactions. His breathing was faster than normal, his eyes were dilated, and his heartbeat seemed to have quickened.

Matt pushed himself off of his brother, nodding for Kari to help TK sit up. He restrained him as best as he could from a sitting position, holding onto TK's shoulders, and looked him directly in the eyes. "How many lines did you do?"

TK looked around, trying his best to find which moving human was Matt. This is the most intense high he ever had. The room was spinning, his heart was racing, and his body suddenly became restless. Giving up on finding the real Matt, he answered, holding up the correct amount of fingers, "I-I think two."

Matt released his brother, relying on Kari to keep him down. "Jesus Christ," he exclaimed, standing up and turning around to the door.

He didn't hear Kari yell his name. Matt quickly sprinted out of the room, knowing TK was in decent hands with her. He pushed people out of his way, trying to find anything that looked familiar to the people in the room he was just in.

His foot hit the last step, bolting him into the living room. His eyes darted around, looking for someone that had been in that room. The people around him stopped what they were doing to watch the spectacle Matt was making of himself. His breathing was harsh from running, his body swung in whatever direction he thought he saw someone in, and his eyes were full of rage and concern.

A familiar hoodie caught Matt's attention from the dining room. The man sitting next to TK stood behind the table, causally chatting like nothing had happened upstairs. Matt's blood began to boil. A familiar feeling washed over him at the sight of that man, a feeling like battling evil Digimon in the Digital World all those years ago. But this time, Matt didn't have Gabumon to fight their battle. He had to do it himself.

Matt walked over to the table, properly identifying him as the same man from upstairs. He had to be calm, or he would run away before the blonde man could even say a word. Once he made it to his side, Matt nudged him, getting his attention. "Hey, I saw you upstairs with my brother," he whispered, looking straight ahead like he wasn't trying to talk to him. "You selling?"

The man let out a laugh, turning towards the blonde. "Yeah, I gave your brother a good trip. Whatcha looking for?"

Matt turned, his sly smile falling to anger again. He didn't respond. Instead, he swung his fist up to the other man's face, sending the man down to the floor. The crowd left the games going on and put their attention to the two men brawling on the ground.

Matt threw himself onto the man, holding his fist over him. "How much did you give him?" he yelled.

The drug dealer, Evan, smirked, egging Matt on. "So I guess you're the brother that's sending him to rehab, huh?"

Matt punched him in the face again, grabbing his arms to hold him down from attacking him. He looked down, and spat, "How do you know that?"

"He told me so!" Evan yelled, struggling below the blonde to break free. "Said it was his last night of freedom, needed to get as fucked up as he could."

The talking stopped. Matt let go of his hands and went back to throwing punches. The dealer managed to wiggle out from under him, blocking as best as he could. The crowd around them chanting to continue the fight. Matt didn't think passed that point. His mind was fueled by rage at what had happened to his brother.

"Stop!" a hoarse voice yelled from behind the crowd.

The crowd stopped chanting and the men stopped their punches to look up at the person behind the voice. The crowd parting, revealing a panting TK, blood dripping down his nose on his pale face. His eyes were begging for something, but Matt wasn't sure. Matt's body was frozen at the sight of TK like that. He looked like a zombie, with no life in him.

TK let it a cough, reaching his hand out for Kari. Kari quickly ran out from behind him, hoisting his arm around her shoulders for support. "Matt, stop," he pleaded in a hoarse voice. "It's my fault, okay? I did one line, took a few more shots, and asked for another. I paid for it; he didn't give it to me."

Matt remained still as TK violently coughed, bent over with his face towards the floor. He watched a blood drop splattered onto the hardwood floor, along with some salvia.

Kari placed her other hand on his chest, holding him up straight as best as she could. "Matt, I know I have a problem, but it's not him. Come beat up me. I'm your brother; I can take it," he said, cringing through the pain flowing through his body.

A sharp gulp fell down Matt's throat as he pushed himself away from Evan. He wasn't even bothered when Evan made a quick bolt out of the dining room to the deck. Matt stood up and took a step towards his brother. "If you knew you had a problem, then why did you do it?"

TK exhaled sharply, feeling his internal system go haywire. He knew he messed up with three substances in his system. He had to apologize before anything happened. "I don't know. The voices in my head keep coming, even when I was drunk. And if I can hear the voices, then the nightmares can still happen." He felt a warm tear fall on his cheek, finally realizing what was wrong with him. "I can't keep hearing Devimon anymore. I've lived with the taunting and the destruction for half of my life."

A cough interrupted his thoughts. He threw his head down, feeling Kari catch him by his chest. He tried to hold himself up, but he was too weak.

TK lifted his head as best as he could, looking around at his peers staring at him with a mix of uncomfortable and concerned looked. He knew that none of them knew what he was talking about. He didn't even have the capacity to regret bringing it up in the middle of them. His heart pumped hard against his chest, his breath catching up. At that moment, TK didn't know if he would get another chance to explain.

He looked around at his friends. "I, TK Takaishi, am an alcoholic." He coughed again. "I'm currently drunk, high on marijuana, and on cocaine." His eyes wandered around at their reactions, not actually taking any of them in. He put on a fake smile, trying to act like he didn't feel like he was dying. "I'm going to rehab, bitches!"

His body fell, unable to hold himself up. Kari dropped with him, not strong enough to hold up his dead weight. Matt ran over to TK on the floor, falling beside him. He took his brother's head in his hands, tilting his head to the side. TK threw up on the ground a mixture of clear and red liquid. Matt hoped it wasn't blood.

"Hey, TK, TK, look at me," Matt begged, ignoring the whispering going on behind them.

TK look up at Matt, the pain in his face obvious now. He knew he messed up worse than he ever had. He would have to accept the consequences. "I'm sorry, Matt," he whispered. "I should've listened to you." He coughed again, the blood from his nose running passed his lips and down his neck.

Matt shook his head. "Don't think about that now, TK."

TK sniffled, feeling the warm liquid draw back into his nose only to fall out again. His heart felt like it was coming out of his chest. His eyes couldn't focus on anything. His stomach was trying to escape through his throat. Nothing felt right with TK's body. He just wanted to shut his eyes and go to sleep.

As his eyes wavered, he tried to give his brother one last look. "I love you, Matt."

Matt's breathing went sharp, watching his brother close his eyes. "No, no, he's overdosing," he panicked, shaking his brother's arm. His head whipped around, looking at the people around him. "Someone call an ambulance!" he begged.

He didn't notice the high schoolers running out of the beach house, going anywhere that they wouldn't get in trouble for underage drinking. He didn't notice Kari was the only one willing to call the emergency unit. Matt's eyes were locked solely on his brother, not knowing how to help him now. This wasn't like any other time Matt had taken care of him in his intoxicated state.

For once, Matt was helpless in helping his brother.

* * *

 **AN: I apologize if anything is incorrect in my description of TK's overdose. I have never done cocaine and all of the things I wrote about were from various websites about the effects of mixing alcohol and cocaine together. Also, I cannot upload the final chapter until sometime next week. I apologize for the wait.**


	9. What I Wish I Could Forget

" _Take every memory ingrained in me  
Erase it from my thoughts so I can sleep  
I'd do anything to feel no pain  
Name your price and take the past away"_

 _What I Wish I Could Forget-Too Close To Touch_

* * *

 _May 16th_

Kari pulled up the edges of the blanket higher on her shoulders, thankful for the orderly who noticed she was cold. The waiting room of the emergency room felt like a tundra to the girl dressed in nothing but a bikini top and shorts.

She yawned again, checking the time of her phone. It was almost seven in the morning. She had been awake all night in the hospital, waiting for any word from Matt on how TK was doing. She tried to push her best friend's collapse out of her mind, but the vomit, sirens, and cries from TK's mom were louder than her own thoughts.

Kari balled her fingers into a fist around the corners of the blanket, holding it tightly around her. It had been her only security those passed few hours. She shut her phone, noticing that Tai hadn't messaged her back. She had driven Matt's car to the hospital as Matt rode with his brother in the ambulance, but not before texting her own brother about what was going on. She hadn't expected a reply at that hour, though. At that point, it was more of a formality.

She ran her tongue over her bottom lip, feeling how dry they felt. The girl hadn't been able to move from her seat to get anything to eat or drink since the front desk told her she could sit and wait in the lobby. Occasionally, a worker would walk passed and give her directions to the vending machines and complimentary coffee bar, but she politely acknowledged their assistance and ignored them. As much as she knew she needed to get something in her system, Kari knew that anything she got would stay on her hands until it hit room temperature.

A scream of pain came through the front doors, causing Kari to lift her head towards the sound. A man came running in, pushing a very pregnant woman in a wheelchair passed the front desk. Kari watched as some of the orderlies ran to them, explaining that they needed to check in first.

Kari shook her head and looking down at her closed phone. "Six," she whispered aloud, keeping track of the amount of women in labor that had passed by her since she had arrived. In her mind was also a count for how many broken bones, stomach illnesses, and stitches flew passed her. That's all she could do from her seat besides blame herself.

Even though Matt told her it wasn't her fault, she felt partially responsible. Mingled in with the images of that night were various other drunken disasters the two younger DigiDestined had experienced. Their first night, their first pre-game, their first marijuana smoke. Kari had been with him for all of it. She should have noticed what was going on long before.

Kari sighed again, knowing that even if she was there for all of it, she was just as bad as TK was at partying. She wasn't on his level of drinking alone or during the day, nor even thinking about cocaine use, but she would have never noticed the warning signs when she was with him because she was doing all of the warning signs, too.

Her stomach twisted in knots, thinking about how easily she could have fallen into TK's position. He said it himself that he was haunted by what happened to them in the Digital World. Her experiences with the Dark Ocean could have easily drug her back there.

Kari pulled the blanket tighter, trying to cocoon herself into forgetting about that. This night made up her mind. She couldn't go back to doing what they had been doing. No more drinking, no more smoking, no more hook-ups.

Her face faltered at the last one. Her feelings for TK had never changed from their best friend state, but something about being with TK intimately felt safe. She knew she could trust TK with anything, even their most inappropriate, untimely moments.

Kari's cheeks blushed, thinking about having to explain their sexual encounters with the rest of the DigiDestined. With everything TK was going through, she knew it probably wasn't the most embarrassing thing they had heard about him the whole day, but it wasn't off the list either. She would have to apologize to him when she saw him.

If she saw him.

Kari groaned, curling her legs up to her chest. She repositioned the blanket over her knees, trying to keep her feet steady on the chair. She knew that she shouldn't think like that, but when she heard the medics taking TK away say that he had overdosed, Kari's mind couldn't think of another outcome. Her eyes darted over the doors where she had watched Matt run back with the other doctors, expected him to come slowly walking out with his head held down, not able to look the brunette in the eyes as he told her that her best friend was dead.

A small scream escaped her mouth as she flung her legs down from their curled up position. The people remaining in the morning waiting room looked over at her, but didn't say a word. All they saw was a small, scared teenage girl wrapped up in a blanket. Most of the people had arrived after her and noticed how she was alone. No one approached her. They just let her frustrated exclamation slip untouched.

Kari ran her fingers through her hair, feeling pieces of sand fall out on her palm. She was tense; she knew this. Her stomach flips at every heart-shattering thought she had about TK and herself and everything going on around her. While she was thankful for the privacy she had to reflect by herself, she knew she would be a lot better with someone there.

As if reading her mind, her phone rang. Kari quickly flipped it open and answered it, not even bothering to look at the caller ID. "Hello?"

"Kari?" Tai's frantic voice echoed through the speaker. "I just listened to your message. Are you okay? Where are you?"

Kari tried to lick her bottom lip again, her mind scattered with the answers to her brother's questions. "I'm fine, Tai, really. I'm sitting in the waiting room of some hospital waiting for Matt or TK's mom to come down as give me any news."

Kari continued on into a more detailed explanation of the night's events than what she was able to leave on Tai's voicemail. Despite feeling horrible, she did her best to not let it show through her voice.

A door slammed from the other end of the phone and a car engine started. "Okay, stay put. I'm on my way to come get you," Tai assured, his voice sound distant. Kari knew she was put on speakerphone.

Kari pinched the bridge of her nose, leaning her head down. "No, Tai, don't come get me. I need to know how TK is."

The line was silent for a few seconds before Tai spoke again, "You're thinking it's your fault still, right?"

The sister bit her lip and looked down at her sandals, clinging them together. "Maybe. I just... I can't help it, okay?" she admitted with a loud sigh.

Tai didn't speak again for a couple seconds, waiting to see if his sister would elaborate. When she didn't, he finally responded, "Okay, I won't come pick you up, but I am coming to keep you company."

A small smile crept on Kari's face. How could she refuse company after being stranded by herself for hours. "Okay," she accepted. "But one favor? Can you bring something to eat? I haven't eaten since yesterday." She looked down at her attired under the blanket. "And a shirt?"

* * *

Matt paced the hallway of his brother's room until he had lost all energy to stand. He leaned his body against a wall, sliding down to the floor.

"Matt, come sit down," his mother implored. "Pacing isn't going to do anyone any good."

Matt sighed, using his remaining strength to stand up and walk over to the chairs the nurses had brought for the family. He looked down at his watch and noted that it was almost eight in the morning. He wondered if Kari was still down in the waiting room.

"I should probably go check on Kari," Matt deterred, not looking down at his empty seat. "If she's still here, she's probably worried."

His mother spoke up, stopping him from heading to the elevator. "Matt, please stay and talk to me," she begged, her voice, however, lacking the natural concern tone of begging.

This phrase struck the blonde man and, without a word, he did what his mother told and sat down next to her. He folded his hands in his lap, looking down at them instead of his mother. He couldn't bring himself to look at her.

"Matt, just answer me this," she asked, her voice unchanged. "If you and Kari knew he was going to this party, why didn't you tell me?"

Matt sighed, unclasping his fingers to run them through his hair. "Well, you had just found out what he was doing. We didn't want to break your heart even more," he admitted, hearing the own stupidity in his voice. "We figured we could handle him ourselves."

A silence fell over them as Ms. Takaishi digested her oldest son's reasoning. Instead of questioning him directly any further, she decided to broaden her understanding, "And Kari knew where he was going to be?"

Matt nodded, still unable to look at her.

"And why did Kari know that information?"

Matt didn't answer, unsure whether he wanted to be the one to tell their mother about TK's actions any further.

Ms. Takaishi picked up on that feeling. "He's already in enough trouble, Matt. I'm his mother. I need to know everything you know."

Matt sighed again, throwing his head in his hands down by his knees before retelling what Kari had told the rest of the DigiDestined about their partying. For both of the younger DigiDestined's benefits, he left out how Kari had given TK his first drink. If their mother knew that part, Matt knew she would do whatever it took to keep them apart.

"But you can't blame this on her, Mom," Matt demanded, finally getting the willpower to look up at her. Her face was stoic, but Matt could see the disappointed look in her eyes. "Not even she knew how bad TK was. She didn't know about him drinking alone or during the day. She only knew about his partying. She's already blaming herself enough."

Their mother didn't say anything. The air remained tense and silent around them. Despite Matt having a key to his mother's apartment, it was more of an empty gesture on her part. Ever since the divorce all those years ago, Matt and his mother weren't that close. Talking to his mother about TK days before had been one of the most positive interactions between the two in years. They never fought, but they never talked much either.

Matt's phone went off, interrupting the silence. "You're supposed to have that off," his mother reprimanded him.

Matt ignored her and checked the caller ID. "It's Tai, probably wondering where Kari is," he replied, flipping open his phone. He began his weak walk down the hall. "I've gotta take this." Matt turned down the corner, heading for the stairs. He knew he would drop the call in the elevator. "Hey, Tai," he answered.

"Hey, how's TK?" Tai asked, skipping formalities.

Matt sighed, knowing he must have talked to Kari about what had happened. "He's stable now," he answered, opening the door for the stairway. "They're running some final tests while they get our mom the rehab papers to admit him. The rehab center we called a few days ago is affiliated with the hospital, so they'll take him once he gets released."

"That's good," Tai answered curtly, unsure of what to say in that tense moment. The two men had faced evil monsters and saved the world side-by-side numerous times, but they were at a loss for words and what they're siblings had done.

"I assumed Kari called you," Matt said, breaking the silence.

"Oh, yeah," Tai answered, coming out of his fog. "I'm pulling up the hospital now. Brought some coffee and bagels for everyone. Thought you guys could use them."

Matt smirked. "Maybe you should be the Crest of Reliability."

"And let Joe take Courage?" Tai suggested, a laugh behind his statement. "I don't think that would work out very well."

Matt let out a small laugh as he turned down to the next flight of stairs. "I guess not." The line held another awkward silence before Matt asked, "Are you coming to pick her up?"

"No, she said she was staying," Tai informed over the slam of a car door. "Just here for support."

Matt grimaced, thinking about what he had told his mother about Kari blaming herself. "You should probably take her home," he suggested. "She's been up for almost 24 hours." Matt opened the door of the stairwell and walked down the ground floor to the waiting room.

"It's her decision, man, not mine," Tai shrugged off, walking through the automatic doors of the hospital. "Okay, I just walked in. I'll see you soon."

Matt didn't say goodbye, just shut his phone and returned it to his pocket. His hand pushed opened the doors to the waiting room, where his eyes made contact with Tai walking in from outside. The men nodded at each other as she searched to find Kari.

Matt eyes caught her first, calling her name. Kari's head popped up from the blanket cocoon she was in. "Matt," she answered, looking over now to the front door to see her brother. "Tai."

Both men sat down next her. Tai wrapped Kari in a long hug before anything was said. From where he placed them on the chair, he gave her one of his shirts. "I didn't have time to stop by Mom and Dad's. I hope one of my shirts is fine."

Kari smiled for the first time that morning as she shed the blanket from her shoulders, revealing her bikini top. "It's perfect right now," she answered, pulling it over her shoulder and onto her torso.

While she was getting dressed, Tai handed a coffee over to Matt. "I think I remembered how you like it: two creams, one sugar?"

Matt didn't have the heart to tell him he had started drinking his coffee black. Instead he smiled back and thanked his friend for the gesture.

Kari took a bite of the cinnamon bagel Tai brought her before looking over at Matt. "Is everything okay?" she asked, the worry in her voice the most obvious thing.

Matt took a sip of his coffee and nodded, explain to her everything he had told her brother moments earlier. "We should be able to see him in a little bit," he finished, holding his cup in both hands. "Mom's going to talk to him first and break everything to him. Then she said we can go in and talk to him one more time."

Kari bit her lip, suddenly not hungry for her bagel anymore. Her stomach flipped, like she was going to throw up. "How much does she know?" she nervously asked, looking down at her bagel instead of the man that the question was directly at. "Like about me and him?"

Matt groaned, filling the silence as he crafted his sentence. "Well... enough," he concluded. "I didn't tell her that you had been drinking longer than him, because then she would try to blame it all on you and not TK; I know how she works." Matt looked over at Kari, noticing that she wasn't looking at him. "She knows that you were with him at parties and that you two had been hooking up, but she also knows that you were as clueless about the extent of the situation as we were."

Kari exhaled, not feeling any better. She put her bagel back in the packaging and set it in her lap. "She has every right to blame me," she whispered, looking between her brother and Matt. "I mean, I did get TK to start drinking."

"But like we said yesterday, that doesn't mean you brought him here," Tai interjected.

"TK made his own decisions," Matt added, adamant about Kari not blaming herself.

Kari's fists clenched the blanket around her. "But when you're there for most of someone's demise and you miss the signs, you feel responsible," she spat, feeling an anger burn in her. "I know TK is his own person and can make his own decisions, but I can, too. And I should have decided to notice the changes in him instead of just taking another shot with him."

The men beside her didn't say anything. For the first time, Kari actually got angry about the situation instead of disappointed. They let her continue, knowing she had some frustrations to get out.

"I didn't want any of this to happen," she exclaimed, feeling tears well up in her eyes. Kari's hands gripped the blanket tighter as she felt the words flow out of her. "We were just supposed to be two teenagers having fun, doing reckless teenager stuff. Now one of us is an addict and the other was on her way there."

She turned towards her brother, wanting more than anything for him to make everything better like he did when they were younger. "We could have gotten in so much trouble, Tai," she cried, her mind racing with possibilities. "We could have been caught by the cops. He could have gotten me pregnant. We could have had alcohol poisoning and died because the other wasn't sober enough to realize it."

Matt cringed at all of the things that could have happened to the younger siblings. He never really thought of the things as in depth as Kari had.

The brunette girl turned her head towards Matt, a stern look below the tears staining her cheek. "So, I'm sorry, but I'm always going to blame myself. A least a little bit."

Neither of the older siblings said anything. Their eyes wondered from each other to Kari repeatedly, each looking for the other to say something to her. It was obvious she had done a lot of thinking on her part in this narrative, but Matt and Tai never realized how deep she felt in it.

Kari turned her face back to the ground, waiting to hear either one of them speak. She knew she shouldn't be arguing with them in the waiting room of TK's hospital visit, but they didn't understand how she felt. She knew she had some part in this and she would do whatever it took to rectify the situation.

Collecting the blanket around her, Kari quickly stood up. "Whatever, I'm—"

The room around her became blurry and her eyes filled with black spots. She stumbled to try to keep her balance. Tai's voice hit her eardrums, but Kari couldn't make out what he said. Her eyes rolled back in her head as her body hit the floor, passing out in the waiting room.

* * *

The constant beep of a machine woke him up, his head pounded and his stomach in more pain that he had ever felt. TK thought this was the worst hangover he had ever had. When he tried to roll over, something held him back. Slowly, he opened his eyes down to his arm, seeing an IV attached to him. His eyes flung wide open, noticing his surroundings: a hospital room. The machine beside his bed started beeping faster, matching the pace of his heart.

Before he could do anything else, TK heard the door fling open. A doctor and his mother filed into the room. The doctor came over the machines and ignored the boy, while his mother walked over to the other side of his bed and placed her hand on his. "TK, sweetie, are you awake?" she asked, concerned.

TK didn't know what was going on. He didn't even know how to answer her obvious question. Before he could, the doctor interrupted his thoughts. "Takeru, do you know where you are?"

TK didn't respond for a minute until he remembered that he was called by his legal name. "Oh, me?" he asked, noticing how hoarse his voice was. Both his throat and his nose felt dry and cracked, making breathing a painful feat. "I'm TK."

"TK, just answered the doctor," his mother demanded.

Taking his mother's advice, TK shook his head. "I assume I'm in a hospital, but I don't know why I'm here, and I don't know how I got here."

The doctor flipped through some papers, writing down some information occasionally. "You were brought in around 1:30 this morning. You overdosed on a mixture of alcohol, marijuana, and cocaine found in your system."

The doctor took his eyes off of his clipboard, giving the teenager a stern look over his glasses. "You're lucky to still be alive with the amount you had in you. I've never had a teenager come in with that high of an BAC."

TK's eyebrows furrowed as he looked over at his mother. Even more confusion set it. "Wait, I-I've never done cocaine before," he stammered, his eyes pleading with his mother to believe him. Then his anxious face fell, his eyes going away from the woman beside him. They fell to the blanket covering him as he bit the inside of his lip. "At least, I don't remember doing cocaine."

"Oh, yes, Takeru," his mother scoffed, removing her hand from his. "That's a phrase every mother wants to hear from her high-schooler."

TK felt his cheeks go red as the pressure pounded against his head. The confusion of his current situation combined with his comedown didn't make his body feel any better. He hadn't lied to her; TK truly didn't remember anything other than the alcohol and marijuana he had at that party. Then again, that party was pretty blurry from the moment he had arrived with his teammates.

He shut his eyes and laid his head back on his pillow. TK knew that once this incident got back to his coach, he was off the team for sure. The only reason he had been passing the occasional drug tests was thanks to a first-year player who admired him enough to give a sample. Once his coach found out he had been cheating on the drug tests _and_ doing illegal drugs, there was no hope for TK's spot to remain.

TK had to push that thought away. He had bigger trouble than his final year on the basketball team. Without opening his eyes, he asked his mother, "So how did I get here?"

"Matt called the emergency number," his mother huffed, leaning back in her seat. "He and Kari followed you to the party and found you."

His mind perked up at the mention of his brother and best friend. TK figured after the spectacle he made of himself at his impromptu intervention, they wouldn't have bothered to help him.

He licked his bottom lip, trying to get the dry feeling out of his system. "They did? Are they here?" TK didn't want to get his hopes up. They were probably more upset with him than his mother appeared to be.

"Matt's waiting outside. I asked to speak to you first," she informed. "Kari's being examined right now. Tai said she hadn't eaten since yesterday morning and passed out in the waiting room."

TK's eyes opened at the news of his best friend. His eyes locked on to his mother's, who wasn't return his concerned look. "She passed out? Is she okay?"

"Yes, she's fine," his mother waved off. "Just a drop in blood sugar. They'll give her something to regulate it, get some food in her, and she'll be fine."

TK let out a relieved sigh, but it was too much of a relief for his mother to skip their conversation.

"Don't sound so relieved," she warned, catching his attention with her stern tone. "We're done talking about her. Let's talk about you."

TK cringed through his headache, but he eventually exhaled, knowing he had this discussion coming. "Okay, I'm ready," he conceded.

Ms. Takaishi mimicked her son, letting out a frustrated sigh. "I know everything you've been doing, by yourself and with that girl."

TK cringed again at how his mother described his best friend, knowing that there was no other possible girl she could have been talking about in that context.

"TK, how could you?" she asked, her voice finally tinged with concern. "Is something so bad that it drives you to abuse substances? Did I do something to push you away from talking to me when something was wrong? I just don't get it."

Another groan escaped his lips as his mother's voice got louder. "Mom, please, I'm nursing a hangover." As soon as he said it, TK realized how weird that phrase sounded. Shaking it out of his head, he bit his lip, trying to figure out how to respond. "Well, Mom..." he dragged out, trying to piece together the words. "You wouldn't understand."

"What do you mean that I wouldn't understand?" she implored, offense taken at his statement.

"Well... I wasn't sure why I was doing it at first," TK admitted, trying to dig deep to find an answer she would like without profusely lying. "But as I mixed my nights sober and drunk, I found a clear difference."

He stopped. He couldn't bring himself to tell his mother about the trauma he knew he had buried inside of him since he was eight. Despite every attempt she made to understand, his mother never fully had a grasp on the whole DigiDestined thing that her sons were involved in.

TK shook his head. "I'm sorry, Mom, but you won't understand why. You weren't there." He turned his head towards her, hearing the crunch of the cheap hospital pillow under him. "It's something to do with the Digital World."

His mother's face scrunched up in anger at TK's reference. "I knew it," she seethed, quickly standing up from her seat as she begun pacing. "I knew I never should have let you two go there. I knew it was dangerous."

"But we had to," TK retorted, hearing an unfamiliar defensive tone in his voice. "We've saved two worlds more times than anyone else."

"And you haven't even finished school," Ms. Takaishi pointed out, pointing her finger aggressively at her son. "You were just a kid. You shouldn't have even had the opportunity to do that."

TK sat up, ignoring the painful sting from his abdomen. "We were chosen. We had no choice," he reminded, defensive. "And if you don't remember, I played a big part in that. I'm the Crest of Hope, Mom. I'm the one of the two crests that makes the darkness weak enough to defeat."

"Well then, why didn't you defeat the darkness in yourself?" his mother yelled, her eyes brimming with tears.

TK stared at his mother with wide, confused eyes and an open mouth at her statement. The door opened, but neither Takaishi removed their stare from each other to greet Matt walking in at the commotion.

"Look at yourself," his mother continued, her voice wavering. "You're a seventeen-year-old alcoholic who overdosed on three different substances." Her hand flew up, providing emphasis for how frustrated she was. "What kind of hope is that? You lay there and tell me how you're some digital embodiment of hope, yet you can't even find hope for yourself."

"Mom," Matt broke her train of thought, putting his hand on her shoulder. "You don't know what he was talking about. You didn't see—"

"I saw my only two sons fight some evil being in the sky before they were even in middle school," she refuted, pushing her eldest son's hand off of her shoulder. "I thought I was watching my children die in front of me. And then you." She turned around to face her youngest, tears now falling down her cheek. "You did it twice. I thought I was going to lose you twice."

Ms. Takaishi wiped her cheek, trying her hardest to remain firm, but feeling her break as well. She knew she shouldn't have been yelling at her sons, but the frustration of the past decade with them was more than she could handle at that point.

"And now I get a call in the middle of the night saying my drunk son is about to get his stomach pumped and you're telling me it's about the Digital World again." She put her hand on her head, trying to calm herself down. "I'm done with what that world has done to this family."

TK wanted to say something, anything to calm his mother down. Even if she didn't understand, he hated to see her like this. He never thought about how this decade of Digital knowledge affected their parents, who had to watch their children potentially risk their lives.

She didn't let them say anything in the prolonged silence. Instead, she grabbed her purse, trying to hide her emotions behind a stern, yet wavering, voice. "Once you're released from here, you're going directly to the rehabilitation center. I'll pack a bag for you to take." With that, she left, leaving the door wide open for her two children to watch her leave out of.

Neither brother spoke. They stood in silence, taking in their mother's outbursts. They bother knew their mother was hesitant to discuss topics related to the Digital World, but never to that extreme.

Matt pulled his attention away from the door down to his little brother. The younger blonde looked shocked, confused, and a little hurt at his mother's reaction. But he also looked weak. His skin was pale and the purple under his eyes that he had been building that year seemed darker. Despite sleeping for almost twelve hours, he knew they weren't restful, seeing how tired TK looked.

"Hey, dude, don't worry. She'll come around," Matt assured, trying his best to pull his brother it of the shocked state he was in.

TK nodded, knowing his brother was right, but was still confused about what had transpired. His mother's curt announcement of TK's next move came as no surprise to him, though. If she hadn't said it, he would have suggested it.

"It's fine," TK assured, finally looking over at his brother. He gave him a small smile. "She'll miss me when I'm away."

Matt had to return the smile his brother had. This was the most inappropriate time to smile, but it also felt right after everything that had happened that night. Matt took a seat in the chair next to his brother's bed and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. He had so much that he wanted to say, but nothing would come out.

"So how's Kari?" TK asked, pulling Matt from his thoughts. "Mom told me what happened. Is she fine?"

Matt couldn't help but let out a small laugh at his brother's concern in that moment. He had almost died hours earlier, but he was more worried about his best friend than his own emotional wellbeing. "Yeah, she's fine. Her and Tai are downstairs right now getting discharged. We tried to tell the nurses that it was just her blood sugar levels, but they have to evaluate everyone who has a medical problem in the building."

Matt looked up at TK, not knowing whether or not his next statement would be wanted. "They said they would be up as soon as they can, if that's okay with you."

TK nodded, but pondered what his brother meant by the ending of his sentence. TK and Kari had been a duo in this whole situation, dating back seven months. Being drunk had become such a big part of their friendship that TK barely remembered a time where they didn't need a bottle of vodka to ease them.

"You know, she's being pretty hard on herself for this whole thing," Matt informed him, seeing the wheels spinning in his brother's head. "She's been blaming herself for getting you started into this lifestyle, talking about how she should have never taught you what you know. At some point, she even mentioned how she was going to stop drinking because she felt so guilty."

TK scoffed, laughing at the over-the-top reaction of his best friend. "And you told her it's not her fault, right?" He didn't even look over for Matt to answer, his question more rhetorical than anything. Between his brother and her brother, TK was sure Kari got an earful about why she shouldn't blame herself. He had to agree with them, but something kept bugging him.

"She doesn't have to stop having fun for me," he smirked, turning his head to his brother. "Although she might want to go a little lighter from now on, seeing as I can't be there to reign her in."

Matt raised his eyebrows quickly, rolling his eyes at the crude undertones of his statement. The room went back to being silent. Neither one knew what to say next, the obvious option hard for either to address. Matt still didn't know why, and TK didn't remember why.

"So, uh, rough question," TK stammered, trying to diverge the actual conversation, but remain on topic. He wasn't quite search how to talk about the reason, but he needed to know what he did. "Did you actually see me do coke last night? Because I don't remember doing it at all."

Matt exhaled, not looking at his brother. It was an image he wanted to get out of his head. If it had been any of his friends, he wouldn't want to remember it, but the fact that it was his little brother hit harder. "Yeah. Kari and I walked in on your second line."

TK gulped, now doubling the amount of the drug he thought he had done. "Shit, no wonder I overdosed."

"It was more of the alcohol than anything else," Matt explained, giving TK a stern look. "The weed and cocaine didn't help, but the alcohol is what did you in."

TK sucked in his cheeks, biting down on the sides as he contemplated what he had done. "So I guess it's not a big deal that I did coke?" he joked.

The older blonde looked at his brother with widened eyes. "Oh, no, it's actually still a pretty big deal that you did _cocaine_ , TK."

Feeling embarrassed, TK's face fell. He gave a small shrug. "Sorry. Just trying to lighten the mood."

Matt shook his head. "We're in a hospital the day after you overdosed and you'll be in rehab by the end of the week," he reminded. "I don't think we have much room for jokes."

TK shrugged, "But I can try, can't I?"

Silence fell back over them. TK felt horrible for putting his loved ones in this position. If he had just listened to Matt the previous day, none of this would have happen. The blonde gripped the blanket in his fist, owning up to his own mistakes.

"Hey, Matt," he said, getting his brother's attention. "I should have listened to you yesterday. I'm sorry."

Matt sighed, placing his hand on top of his brother's fist. The frustrations of the brother were two different types, but at the moment, Matt put aside his first instinct and felt grateful that he was able to be there to have this conversation with his brother instead of the alternative path.

Finally, Matt got the courage to ask what he had been trying to question the whole time. "I just want to know why?" he asked. "You said something yesterday about nightmares and Devimon. Before you collapsed, you admitted you had a problem. If you knew, then why did you go last night?"

TK pursed his lips, not remembering telling Matt about the subject of the nightmares he's had since he was a child. He knew he was having them, but he never actually thought he was seeking to drown them out. At least, that was never an intention said aloud. TK kept eye contact with his fists, trying to remember when he first discovered that alcohol kept Devimon out of his thoughts. He hadn't even accepted that he had problem sober before. Why was it so easy for him to admit that when he was blackout drunk?

"I don't know," he finally admitted. "Maybe drunk me was smarter than sober me and figured it out a long time ago." TK ran his fingers through his blonde hair, noticing the knot his fist left in the blanket. "I know that I still have nightmares about the whole Devimon thing. I mean, I was only eight and I watched my Digimon sacrifice himself." A shiver went down his spine at the memory.

Matt didn't want to interject until he felt his brother had finished, but he remembered something he said at Izzy's apartment that had struck him. "When I confronted you earlier yesterday, you said something about living a normal life, not a DigiDestined one."

TK groaned, remembering what he had said in his tipsy outburst at lunch the day before. "I don't know. Maybe Mom was right." He noticed his older brother's eyebrows furrow at the statement. "I mean, think about it. We were just kids asked to save two different worlds. Of course we were put in dangerous situations. I wouldn't call anything we've lived with 'normal.'"

The older brother knew TK had a point, but he was still put off by the answer. "But you and I have never lived a normal life, even before summer camp that year," he pointed out. Their parent's divorce was still a sore subject for the brothers, despite the youngest one barely remembering a time when the four lived together as one family.

TK looked over at his brother with a weak but firm glare. "Divorce is different than the Digital World. Thousands of kids are living in divorced households. Only eight of us were called that summer to save the world. That's not a lot of room for error."

"But other kids around the world have Digivices and their own Digimon," Matt reminded.

"But they don't have crests," TK rebutted. "They weren't the ones who had to defeat Devimon or Myiotismon or Piedmon." The frustration dripped from every syllable of the evil Digimon the brothers had fought. "That was us."

Matt scrunched his face up in frustration. "I don't know what you want me to say, TK," he exclaimed.

"Say that you were hurt, too," TK begged.

Matt's face relaxed at his brother's outburst. He looked into TK's eyes and noticed the emotional pain behind them.

"Say that you were hurt by all of this, too," TK continued, balling his hands into fists. "We were only kids and had the responsibility of saving the world on our shoulders. How messed up is that?"

He gulped, trying to gather his thoughts before he exclaimed his unfiltered version. "I was only eight when I had to watch someone I had grown attach to die right in front of me. What's worse is he chose to die. Angemon chose to sacrifice himself in front of me."

TK's voice dropped to a whisper, his face hurt. "I have to live with that scene playing in my head for the rest of my life, Matt."

Matt didn't know what to say. While he felt a little upset at the timing of his chosen status, he was never as affected by it as TK appeared to be. Matt couldn't lie to him and say he felt his pain, because he honestly believed that he didn't. The older brother didn't watch his Digimon sacrifice himself. He didn't have to go back years later and do it all over again. Most importantly, he was a pre-teen, not a little kid when their adventure started.

TK sighed, throwing his body back down. His eyes rolled as he stared up at the ceiling. "Call it alcoholism; Call it PTSD. I don't know. All I know is that I can't keep living like this."

Matt sighed again, relaxing his body in his chair. "That's something we can both agree on," he commented, trying to smile at his brother, but his lips wouldn't form the motion.

"Besides, rehab will probably figure all of this out," TK waved off, trying to remove the tension in the room. A small smirk appeared on his face. "At least, it'll be the first case of Digi-trauma to appear."

The smile Matt tried to give broke through. No matter what situation they were in, TK had been the one to be positive. He gave hope to the group. It was only right that he tried to sound hopeful, at least for Matt's sake. Matt smiled, knowing the hope his brother had lost would be coming back.

The older brother patted TK's leg. "You'll be a first, I can tell you that much."

A knock came from the door, causing the brothers to investigate who was there. Tai and Kari stood in the doorway, a nervous smile across both of this face.

"Is this a bad time?" Tai asked, walking in anyway.

"No, we're good," TK shrugged, sending a small smile in Matt's direction.

The Kamiya siblings down beside the younger blonde's bed. Tai gave some cordial questions, asking how TK was doing and general information. Kari, on the other hand, remained quiet, refusing to look at her best friend.

TK noticed this, confused at her reaction at first, but then he thought about everything between the two. This affected everything that had happened between them in the past six months. It was only reasonable that they would have some hesitation towards each other.

But TK wasn't fond of the reserved nature of his best friend. He and Kari had been together since they were eight. It didn't make sense to him that six months would wipe out a decade of friendship.

The blonde boy looked over at her and called her name, getting her attention. "Hey," he smiled, a laugh behind his words. He lifted his wrist and pointed to the white band around it. "We match."

Kari looked confused, then looked down at her own hospital bracelet. She hated that she had passed out in the waiting room, and really didn't want to be reminded of it when TK was in much worse condition than she was. But the funny response from him made her smile at what he caught attention of.

Kari lifted her own wrist and pointed at it, letting out a forced laugh. "Oh, yeah, I guess we do." She narrowed her eyes at him, smirking deviously. "Although for very different reasons."

TK laughed, missing the forced nature of her comments. "Looks like you need to remember to eat, Kamiya."

Kari rolled her eyes, rubbing her arm awkwardly. "Well, there were more important things on my mind yesterday," she confessed. Even though she meant it seriously, the nervous and awkward look on her face concealed that fact.

TK's body stiffed at her remarks. "Yeah, I'm sorry about that."

The room became silent as the brother's let their younger siblings work out whatever was going on between them. Ever since Kari had walked into the room, there had been an awkward tension between the two teenagers.

TK finally spoke up, knowing he had to be the one to initiate the conversation. "Look, I know we made some mistakes, but..." He trailed off, making sure he had Kari's attention. It was hard to talk about what they had done, especially sober, but he knew it had to be done. "But that doesn't mean we ruined everything. We were dumb."

"Really dumb," Kari interrupted.

" _Super_ dumb," TK emphasized. "But we can't help how our brains react this things like this. Just because you were with me doesn't mean that you had any control on how I would process anything."

Kari looked up with a questioning look on her face, her body still timid and tense.

"We did all of the same stuff: the same liquor, the same drugs. But only one of us was affected as bad as I was," TK continued. "You can't blame yourself for something I did."

The brunette wanted to scream. She had received that talk too many times that day for her own liking. Hearing it from TK just made her feel worse. But now wasn't the time to argue. She wasn't going to see her best friend for a while and she didn't want to leave on a stale note.

Instead of telling the truth on her feelings, Kari sighed and lowered her head, going along with what everyone had told her. "Okay."

TK didn't completely believe her, but he knew better than to press on. If Kari was still there, then that meant he would still have her to confront after he left rehab.

His mind went spinning at the thought again. He never expected that he would in this position, especially not at his age. Looking back at all of the mornings after, waking up next to Kari or falling out of Matt's bed still drunk, he knew he had no other choice. TK wasn't just trying to be a normal teenager. He was a danger to himself. He was the Crest of Hope, but his mother was right: he had lost hope in himself. But not anymore.

TK's eyes wondered from face to face in the room, angry at himself that he made them worry so much about him. He knew that he had more than himself to get better for. He owed it to Kari, for making her feel like it was her fault. He owed it to his mother, who he had been scaring for a decade now. Most importantly, he owed it to Matt, who saw that he needed help before anyone else did.

The nervous eyes stared back at him as no one spoke. Everyone was waiting for TK to say something.

"Hey, guys, don't worry about me," TK assured, smiling at the people who cared about him. "I'll be fine. I know what I did wrong, I've got a great support system, and a brother who'll kick my ass if I mess up again."

Matt had to smile. He reached over to ruffle TK's hair, just had he had done when they were younger. That was the TK he knew would come back, but a bit more mature and a lot more weathered. Matt didn't expect a clean recovery, but he knew TK had the right idea now.

"Besides, I'm the Crest of Hope," TK reminded, shoving his brother's hand away from his hair. "If anyone has hope for this next step, it's me. Right?"

* * *

 **AN: I'm sorry for the week-long wait. To be honest, I was very hesitant to write this until I found a song for the beginning. To make up for the wait, this is the longest chapter, as it should be. It was 26 pages in word, so I hope that's enough to satisfy.**

 **On another note, I left a few things open-ended, because I have an idea for a spin-off sequel in mind. It's very clichéd, despite the turns I would have planned. Honestly, I have the entire plot planned out, but I'm very hesitant to go ahead and do it because it's such an obvious thing and I'm starting college again in less than a month, meaning it wouldn't have a lot of time to do it justice. So I may or may not be posting a spin-off sequel.**

 **Thank you to everyone who read this. It means a lot to me that you took the time to review, favorite, and follow this story.**


	10. Sequel

Hello!

First of all, I would like to say thank you for the favorites, follows, and reviews this story got. A lot of them have changed the perspective in which I thought about this story and have taken in a better direction. I thank you for improving my thought process and story telling.

That being said, I couldn't help myself. I know I said I was hesitant to post a sequel because of upcoming time conflicts, but I could not stop thinking about the plotline. There's so much I want to discuss and I have it all plotted out.

So with that said, I have published the first chapter of _Avalanche_ , the sequel to _Comedown_. Hopefully, it holds up to what you guys thought of _Comedown_.

Again, thank you all very much for your support, and I hope you enjoy _Avalanche_ as much as I enjoyed plotting it.

-OurSkyUnderTheSea


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